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THE 
 
 CATHEDRAL CHURCHES 
 
 Of’ // 5 ~- ^ - 
 
 ENGLAND AND fjlLES: 
 
 liEIXG 
 
 ARCHITECTURAL AND PICTURESQUE ILLUSTRATIONS 
 FROM DRAWINGS MADE EXPRESSLY FOR THIS WORK 
 
 BY 
 
 H. K. BROWN, GARLAND, SALMON, WARREN, BALED, Ere. 
 
 T^islariutl nsiLt J)j5scnnliu$ 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 THE LONDON PRINTING AND PUBLISHING COMPANY, LIMITED, 
 
 LONDON AND NEW YORK. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Aw eminent and learned prelate has drawn a beautiful analogy betwixt 
 a church, as displaying the admirable effect of the principles of archi- 
 tecture, and the Christian religion. “ The divine order and economy 
 of the one seems to be emblematically set forth by the just, plain, 
 and majestic architecture of the other; and as the one consists of a 
 great variety of parts united in the same regular design according to 
 the truest art, and most exact proportion, so the other contains a decent 
 subordination of members, various sacred institutions, sublime doctrines, 
 and solid precepts of morality digested into the same design, and with 
 an admirable concurrence tending to one view — the happiness and 
 exaltation of human natureh” 
 
 The introduction of Christianity to Britain is repeatedly affirmed on 
 the most respectable authority^ to have been occasioned by St. Paul the 
 apostle. David, who preached to the Britons in the fifth century, is 
 acknowledged as the patron saint of Wales ; St. Cuthbert is called 
 the apostle of the north ; and St. Patrick of Ireland. St. Columba 
 is renowned in Scottish history as the chief agent in converting the 
 northern inhabitants of the British islands, and from the extraordinary 
 number of its monastic institutions England has been called “ The Isle 
 of Saints.” 
 
 In Wales, the best authorities for the more ancient histories of that 
 country, mention with confidence the existence of bishoprics at Caer- 
 leon, St. David’s, and Bangor ; and in Scotland a bishop of the isles 
 is said to have been established within a century after the conversion 
 of Constantine. 
 
 The English name of Bishop, seemingly of Greek origin, is derived 
 from the Anglo-Saxon biscop, a corruption of episcopus, and implies 
 the head of the clergy, or persons publicly employed in the church; 
 his jurisdiction was originally of a spiritual nature, and consisted 
 chiefly of superintendence in religious ceremonies, in the discipline of 
 the church, and the administration of the sacrament. The bishops, as 
 vicegerents of Christ, and successors of the apostles, claimed the 
 
 * Berkeley. 
 
 2 Tracts on the Origin and Independence of the Ancient British Church, by 
 Bishop Burgess ; and Origines Britannicse, or the Antiquities of British Churches, 
 by Bishop Stillingfleet ; — both works of great learning, displaying a knowledge of 
 antiquities only to he acquired by deep study of the subject. 
 
 a 
 
IKTEODUCTIOK. 
 
 ii 
 
 exclusive privilege of conferring the sacerdotal character in the conse- 
 cration of ecclesiastical ministers. Their authority is also of a temporal 
 nature, in common vrith peers of the realm*, and the dignity of their 
 respective sees is sustained by large estates, not only within their own 
 dioceses but sometimes in distant counties. 
 
 The hundred of Oswaldslow, in Worcestershire, which lies chiefly 
 in the centre of the county, consists of estates granted by King Edgar 
 in the year 964 to St. Oswald, Bishop of Worcester, and contains 
 certain parcels of land separated from the rest of the county, all which 
 as they belonged to the church are included within this hundred. 
 
 The Isle of Ely under the abbots of Ely, and afterwards the bishops, 
 held the privileges of a county palatine till the reign of Henry VIII., 
 when they were, in common with other jurisdictions of a like nature, 
 considerably abridged by parliament. The bishop is custos rotulorum 
 of the Isle, and has stiU almost sovereign authority within his franchise, 
 or liberty. Its jurisdiction is distinct from that of the county of Cam- 
 bridge, in which it is locally situated, in civil as well as in criminal 
 matters ; the liberty contains a large district, having more powers and 
 privileges than any other franchise, excepting that of the bishop of 
 Durham*. 
 
 Under the names of plough alms, kirk shot, soul shot, Eome scot, 
 and Peter pence, contributions in the early period of church history, 
 were constantly levied towards the support of the clergy. Whilst 
 Bishop Marshall was engaged in completing the cathedral of Exeter, 
 he required every housekeeper in the city to pay a sum yearly towards 
 it at Whitsuntide : this probably was the origin of the payment of the 
 diocesan farthing, which appears to have been required for centuries 
 from every parishioner throughout that bishopric, and is still collected 
 from the inhabitants of Exeter, although not applied as it formerly was 
 to keep the cathedral in repair®. 
 
 The principal source of ecclesiastical revenue was tithes, the origin 
 
 ® Archbishops and bishops, as well as the great barons, are called Thanes, or 
 nobility, in Domesday Book. 
 
 * The chief justice and chief bailiff, as well as other officers, are appointed 
 by the Bishop of Ely. The office of chief bailiff is one of considerable importance, 
 being equivalent, within the Isle, to that of high sheriff of a county, and the bailiff 
 does every act which a sheriff of a county performs, excepting that he does not 
 account before the barons of the exchequer, and his appointment is p’-i termino vitce. 
 
 * It appears that a confirmation of this farthing rate, printed by Thomas Petyt, 
 inithe reign of Henry VIII. , is pasted on one of the cases in the muniment room of 
 the Cathedral. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 iii 
 
 of wliich in England ia said to be a grant of King Ethelwolf in the 
 year 855, these were prsedial, and arose from the produce of the earth, 
 2s corn, hay, and wood, now called the great tithes. About the year 
 1200, tithes were extended to every species of profit, including mer- 
 chandize and military service, and to wages of every kind of labour. 
 Sometimes the founder of a church granted a tiihe of corn only, and 
 at a subsequent period added to his original donation tithes of cattle, 
 &c. The clergy reached the zenith in respect of territorial property 
 about the conclusion of the twelfth century ; they, then, enjoyed nearly 
 one half of England®. 
 
 The district subjected to a bishop’s authority was originally called 
 his parish, which in the early ages of the church implied the same as 
 diocese. It is admitted by the most intelligent ecclesiastical anti- 
 quaries, that the distribution of the kingdom into parishes, in the present 
 acceptation of the term, did not originate in any specific decree’, but 
 was the progressive work of ages, and nearly completed by the end of 
 the twelfth century. A comparatively few parishes were, it is true, 
 formed in the Anglo-Saxon era, but being too extended in their boun- 
 daries for the accommodation of a dispersed population, were subse- 
 quently divided in the Anglo-Norman period®. 
 
 After the division of the great bishoprics into several dioceses, 
 which was effected by Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the 
 seventh century, the churches of the bishops began to be distinguished 
 by the name of Cathedral, from the episcopal cathedra, or chair, in 
 those churches; whence also the seat of episcopal power is called 
 the see®. 
 
 The extent and boundaries of the respective dioceses of the En glish 
 bishops have been variously and accidentally decided, but they all 
 
 * Hallam. 
 
 f Attributed to Saint Honorius, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the year 636. 
 
 * Baker’s History of Northamptonshire; the same author mentions Stotesbury, 
 near Brackley, as presenting a singular anomaly of a parish without either church 
 or village. 
 
 ® Cader and Caer, the primitive words, were applied to heights, as Cader Idris, 
 as well as to walled cities, as Caer Icon, and Caer lyell, or Carlisle. Carew, the 
 historian of Cornwall, says, 
 
 “ who knows not Michael’s mount and c/tair, 
 
 The pilgrim’s holy vaunt 1” 
 
 Seat, settle, and saddle, have also the same meaning, as high settle, king’s settle, 
 and bishop’s settle, or see. Sadberg, in Durham, an eminence or seat, part of the 
 original patrimony of the church, was anciently a county in itself, having its own 
 sheriff coroner, &c. 
 
 a 2 
 
IV 
 
 IITTEODUCTIOK. 
 
 possess an equal and indelible character, deriving their power from the 
 apostles and from the law. The establishment of a bishop was inferior 
 in splendour only to that of a king. Bishopric is properly the dominion 
 of a bishop, Eic signifying dominion; his appurtenances are all of 
 princely denomination ; he has his palace, his throne, his chancellor, 
 &c. The bishop exacts implicit obedience in the government of his 
 peculiar diocese, and observes the same towards the higher authorities 
 of metropolitan and primate, titles conferred on bishops of the principal 
 cities, whose jurisdiction extends over the provinces of Canterbury and 
 York. 
 
 The archbishops of Canterbury were anciently nominated by the Pope 
 by bulls of provision ; and the pall, an emblem of ecclesiastical sove- 
 reignty was conferred by the Pope, having first been laid on the tomb 
 of St. Peter; on receiving it an oath of canonical obedience and 
 fidelity to Eome was required to be made ; without the pall, the 
 archbishop could not hold a council, or consecrate a bishop, at which 
 ceremony it was always worn’®. 
 
 A very fine intagliated brass figure of Archbishop Waldeby, on 
 his monument in "Westminister Abbey, alfords a most satisfactory 
 example of the archiepiscopal costume. Waldeby was translated from 
 Dublin to the see of Chichester ; and in 1396, he succeeded Archbishop 
 Arundel as primate of England : he was archbishop of York but a short 
 time, dying the very next year, he was buried in the chapel of St. 
 Edmund the king. The full length figure of the archbishop is repre- 
 sented enshrined within a light and tasteful tabernacle; upon his 
 head is a mitre enriched with Jewels, which was worn only upon most 
 solemn occasions. In his left hand he bears the pastoral staff sur- 
 
 The precise form with which the insignia were delivered to Archbishop Dene, 
 in the reign of Henry VII., is given in Collier’s Ecclesiastical History, vol. i. p, 701. 
 The pastoral staff was put into the archbishop’s hands by a monk commissioned by 
 the prior and convent of Canterbury, with these words, “ Eeverend father, I am 
 sent to you from the sovereign prince of the world, who requires and commands you 
 to undertake the government of his church, and to love and protect her, and in 
 proof of my orders, I deliver you the standard of the king of heaven.” After this, 
 the archbishop received his pall by the hands of the Bishop of Lichfield and 
 Coventry, commissioned by the Pope for that purpose, which was delivered to him 
 with this form : “ To the honour of Almighty God and the blessed Virgin Mary, the 
 
 holy apostles St. Peter and St. Paul, our lord Pope Alexander VI. the holy Eoman 
 church, and also of the holy church of Canterbury committed to their charge, we 
 give you, in the pall, taken from the body of St. Peter, a full authority for the 
 exercise of your archiepiscopal function, with the liberty of wearing this honourable 
 distinction in your cathedral, upon certain days mentioned in the apostolical bulls 
 of privilege.” 
 
IHTEODUCTION. 
 
 7 
 
 mounted by a cross, always held by the bishop when giving the bene- 
 diction, but on other occasions borne before him as a symbol of 
 authority, and implying his pastoral jurisdiction. The two fore-fingers 
 of the bishop’s right hand are extended as in the act of benediction, 
 and upon his middle finger is a ring, which as well as the ornamented 
 gloves was essential to a prelate. The ring was bestowed upon the 
 bishop as a type of the marriage of Jesus Christ with his church, and 
 accepted by him as a pledge of his fidelity to the charge. Over the 
 mass habit, or chasuble, is seen the pall, worn, only by metropolitans, 
 above all other garments ; it is in the form of a fillet about the neck, 
 encompassing the shoulders, and having pendents before and behind, 
 kept in their position by little laminae of lead rounded at their extre- 
 mities and covered with silk. Sometin es the pall was fastened to the 
 dress by large ornamented pins, which are to be seen on the sculp- 
 tured effigy of Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury, on his tomb.'^ 
 The pall upon the figure of Archbishop Waldeby, is adorned in front 
 by six crosses pattee fitchee: upon the left arm is the fannel, or 
 maniple, embroidered, and fringed at the ends. Beneath the lower 
 hem of the dalmatic are the ends of the stole, a long ornamented 
 band, worn round the neck and over the alb, an under garment reaching 
 down to the feet, a part of ecclesiastical dress from which the surplice 
 of modern times apparently derived its origin and colour. The iuta- 
 gliated brass plates on the monumental slabs of prelates, would afford 
 a very fine pictorial series of the peculiar costume of the various 
 eras.^^ 
 
 Archbishop Peckham, who had a taste for magnificence, is said to 
 have expended 4000 marks at Home on his confirmation, and 2000 
 marks at Canterbury on his enthronization. The following extract 
 from Godwyn’s “ Catalogue of the Bishops of England,” with un- 
 adorned minuteness, gives a striking picture of the manners of the- 
 age, and shows with what magnificence an archbishop took possession 
 of his dignity. “ William Warham, Bishop of London, was translated 
 to Canterbury, November 29, and enthronized March 9, 1504, with 
 wonderful great solemnity. The day before his coming to Canterbury, 
 
 The apostolical sub-deacons of St. John de Lateran, in Borne, possessed the 
 exclusive privilege of making the palls of white wool shorn from lambs, offered 
 annually by the nuns of St. Agnes, on 21st of January, when they were received in 
 form by two canons of the church and delivered to the sub-deacons, 
 
 12 The figure of Archbishop "Waldeby is engraved in Harding’s “Antiquities 
 in "Westminster Abbey." 
 
INTEODUCTION. 
 
 vi 
 
 the Duke of Buckingham, his high steward, came hither attended with 
 seven score horse, to see all things in readiness. The duke held also 
 the office of chief butler, and being unable to do the duties of both, 
 he deputed Sir George Bouchier to the butlership, and took great 
 pains to see that nothing was wanting requisite for the performance of 
 this ceremony in the most magnificent manner. The next day, which was 
 Sunday, the Duke met the archbishop over against St. Andrew’s Church, 
 and doing low obeisance to him, went before him to Christ’s Church. 
 At the great gate near the market-place, the prior and convent received 
 the archbishop honourably, and carried him to the church, whither he 
 w'ent from St. Andrew’s barefoot, said mass there, and was placed in 
 his throne after the accustomed manner. Brom the church he was 
 attended by the duke, as he was thitherward- The cheer at dinner 
 was as great as for money it might be made ; before the first mess, the 
 Duke of Buckingham himself came riding into the hall upon a great 
 horse, bare-headed, with his white staff in his hand, and when the first 
 dish was set on the table made obeisance by bowing his body. Having 
 so done he betook him to his chamber, when there was provision made 
 for him, according to his state. With the Archbishop of Canterbury 
 sate the Earl of Essex, the Bishop of Man, the Lord Abergavenny, the 
 Lord Brook, the Prior of Canterbury, and the Abbot of St. Augustine’s. 
 The Duke of Buckingham at his table was accompanied by the Lords 
 Clinton, Sir Edward Poynings, the chief justice of England, named 
 Phineux, Sir William Scott, Sir Thomas Kemp, and others. A great 
 many other guests were served in other places, noblemen and knights 
 at one table, doctors of divinity and law at another, and gentlemen of 
 the country at a third, besides an infinite number of meaner calling, 
 placed by themselves, according to their several degrees.” 
 
 Both archbishops and bishops enjoyed the regal privilege of coining, 
 and although it was in some measure curtailed, the Archbishop of 
 York continued to coin money, bearing the same stamp as the kings, 
 till the reign of Elizabeth; the coins of Wolsey are marked with the 
 cardinal’s hat. Two publications on this subject are well known to 
 antiquaries ; one by Samuel Pegge, entitled “ An assemblage of Coins 
 fabricated by authority of the Archbishops of Canterbury,” was 
 published in 1772. “ A Tract on the episcopal Coins of Durham,” 
 by Benjamin Bartlett, was printed by George Allan, Esq., of Darling- 
 ton, in 1778, and was reprinted with notes, by John Trotter Brockett, 
 in the year 1817. 
 
INTEODrCTION. 
 
 vii 
 
 Ancient episcopal seals are exceedingly curious and interesting 
 historical records, representing not only the figure of the patron saint, 
 but that of the bishop himself ; these are generally in form of an oval, 
 pointed at the extremities, but some, of the Anglo-Saxon period, are 
 round, as that of Durham none, indeed, that are of a pointed oval 
 form are supposed to be older than the eleventh century: a form 
 still retained in all episcopal and archdiaconal seals.** Eeligious 
 institutions of royal foundation had commonly round seals ; those 
 of Norwich cathedral priory are of this class. Bishops are distin- 
 guished upon ancient seals by having the pastoral staff in their left 
 hands ; abbots bear it in their right bands. Another distinction between 
 the representation of bishops and abbots to be noticed on all contem- 
 porary seal^ is the mode of wearing the mitre. It was the custom 
 for bishops to wear their mitres with the broad side before, but abbots 
 bore them with the horns in the front. The devices upon early 
 seals are remarkable for their simplicity ; a series is interesting, as 
 exhibiting a progressive improvement in design and execution : the 
 more recent seals are often highly finished, being ornamented with 
 subjects illustrative of the ecclesiastical architecture of the period, and 
 frequently contain a group of figures upon each impress. At the 
 base of the seal was then placed the bishop, praying to the patron 
 saint of the convent, to be observed on a great number of epis- 
 copal seals. The bishops of the fourteenth century introduced their 
 own arms upon their seals, in a separate shield from that of their 
 see, and afterwards impaled them with those of the bishopric in one 
 shield. The popes have two seals ; that which is used for the bulls is 
 always impressed in lead, and represents the heads of St. Peter and 
 St, Paul; the private seal, called the fisherman’s ring, Vanello del 
 piscatore, is impressed in red wax, and represents St. Peter drawing 
 his net. The seals of bishops are of red wax, and those of the present 
 time have no other device than the arms of the respective bishops 
 impaled with those of the see. 
 
 The archbishops and bishops of England claim the same privileges 
 
 Published by Dr. Smith in bis edition of Bede. 
 
 ** It may not be uninteresting to the antiquary, or man of taste, to be informed 
 that casts in sulphur of nearly the whole series may be readily obtained. J . Doubleday, 
 in Little Bussell Street, near the British Museum, has acquired a method of taking 
 impressions from seals appended to deeds without injury to the originals, and has 
 upwards of 10,000 ancient seals so acquired, including nearly all those that have 
 been engraved or described in the “Vestusta Monumenta,” “ Archeeologia,” and 
 other celebrated w'orks. 
 
IKTEODTJCTIOIT. 
 
 as peers of the realm, excepting that they do not sit on trial in cases of 
 blood, being prohibited by the canons of the church from being judges 
 of life and death. 
 
 Bishops and abbots formerly sat in parliament, not only on account 
 of their episcopal jurisdiction, but by prescription, arising from the 
 importance of their secular baronies, which were unalienable from their 
 respective dignities. Although a seat in parliament is now considered one 
 of the most distinguished privileges of the peerage, the ecclesiastics of 
 the middle ages viewed the service as a burden, and it has been observed, 
 that the anxiety with which our ancestors endeavoured to get free from 
 the obligation of sitting in parliament, is surpassed by that only with 
 which their posterity solicit to be admitted there.'® In the year 1514 
 the mitred abbots who possesse 1 the privilege of sitting in parliament 
 were more in number than Ihe bishops; there were at that time 
 twenty-eight mitred abbots and only nineteen bishops ; the mitres of 
 parliamentary abbots were decided to be made of silver, partially gilt 
 with gold, to distinguish them from the mitres of bishops which were of 
 pure gold. 
 
 The election of bishops is made by the king’s licence directed to the 
 dean and chapter, who certify their election, under their common seal, 
 to the king, the archbishop of the province, and to the bishop elect. 
 The king’s assent is given under the great seal directed to the arch- 
 bishop, commanding him to confirm and consecrate the bishop. The 
 archbishop then grants a commission to his vicar-general to perform 
 the ceremony. The bishop, on confirmation, has jurisdiction in his 
 diocese, and, on consecration, has right to the temporalities. He has a 
 consistory court, and holds a visitation once in three years, or by his 
 archdeacon every year. 
 
 The origin of Chapters of Cathedral churches may be traced to a 
 very remote period, as a council of advice, or kind of parliament to the 
 Dishop, even before the establishment of parochial divisions. The Chapter 
 consists of prebendaries, or canons, who confirm the bishop’s grants, 
 but who are distinguished as possessing individual property, and by 
 the enjoyment of separate benefices. The bishop as patron of the 
 prebends does not nominate to all ; they are sometimes donative. At 
 Westminster the king collates by patent, and some are in the gift of 
 laymen, who present the prebendary to the bishop, and the dean and 
 chapter then induct him to his stall in the cathedral church. 
 
 '•* Eobertson’s History of Scotland, vol. i. 
 
IKTEODUCTIOK. 
 
 ix 
 
 The dean is tlie head of the chapter, or bishop’s council, but in 
 some Cathedral churches there is no dean, as at Llandaff and St. David’s, 
 where the bishop is the head of the chapter, and in his absence the arch- 
 deacon. There is also a dean without a chapter at Battle, and a chapter, 
 without a dean at Southwell. The dean of the Chapel Eoyal has no 
 jurisdiction, as was formerly the case with rural deans. 
 
 In any attempt to ascertain the origin of the episcopal sees in 
 England, it must soon be discovered that the most important documents 
 the early records and charters of the church, are of very doubtful autho- 
 rity, and have been for the most part either forged or interpolated to 
 serve particular purposes.'® 
 
 The history of the foundation of English bishoprics is buried in 
 such obscurity that, with the exception of those sees instituted since 
 the Reformation, there is scarcely a single bishopric of which it is pos- 
 sible to give the precise date of its erection, but the authorities generally 
 received have been considered amply sufficient in forming the following 
 
 CrSronological Hist of tfic lEnglisf) 
 
 1. Canteebury. 
 
 The archlepiscopal see of the primate and metropolitan of all England 
 was established in the year 597, by Pope Gregory the Great, who sent 
 the pall to Augustine. The province of Canterbury includes the 
 bishoprics of Bangor, Bath and Wells, Bristol, Chichester, Lichfield 
 and Coventry, Ely, Exeter, Gloucester, Hereford, Llandaff, Lincoln, 
 London, Norwich, Oxford, Peterborough, Rochester, St. Asaph, St. 
 David’s, Salisbury, Winchester, and Worcester. The province of 
 Canterbury was finally settled by Pope Leo III., A.D. 803, when he 
 denounced everlasting damnation against all who should attempt to 
 tear the coat of Christ.'’ The arms of the archiepiscopal see represent 
 the staff and pall, insignia formerly of great importance. 
 
 2. Eochestee. 
 
 The see of Rochester, the smallest in the kingdom, is next to that 
 of Canterbury, the most ancient. Justus, the first bishop of Rochester, 
 was consecrated by Augustine, A.D. 601, about ten years after he 
 came first to England. The bishop of Rochester is chaplain and was 
 formerly cross bearer to the archbishop of Canterbury, who claimed and 
 
 On the authority of Somner, Spelman, and Casaubon, celebrated anti(juarie3, 
 who agree on this point. 
 
 Batteley. 
 
 b 
 
INTEODUCTIOIT. 
 
 X 
 
 enjoyed for several centuries the entire disposal of this bishopric. The 
 Cathedral church erected by Ethelbert, king of Kent, was dedicated 
 to St. Andrew, out of respect to the monastery of St. Andrew, at Eome, 
 of which Augustine was originally a member, and the arms of this see 
 are borne in reference to the instrument of martyrdom of the patron saint. 
 
 3. London. 
 
 Melitus, the first bishop of London, was consecrated by Augustine, 
 archbishop of Canterbury, A.D. 604, and in his time Ethelbert, king of 
 Kent, built the Cathedral of St. Paul. The arms of this see, two swords 
 in saltier, are emblematical of the martyrdom of the apostle. 
 
 King Henry VIII., prior to the general dissolution of monasteries, 
 determined to erect several of them into episcopal sees. The bishopric 
 of Westminster was then taken from the diocese of London, and on the 
 I7th of December, 1540, the abbey church of St. Peter was advanced 
 to the dignity of a cathedral by the king’s letters patent. Dr. John 
 Thirleby, the first and only bishop, was obliged to surrender his see, on 
 the 29th of March, 1550, when the diocese, consisting of the county of 
 Middlesex, was restored to London, and several estates, belonging to 
 the dean of Westminster, were at the same time granted, in trust to 
 be applied to the repairs of St. Paul’s Cathedral. This appropriation 
 of the revenues of St. Peter’s Church is said to have suggested the 
 adage of “ robbing Peter to pay Paul.” An act of parliament was 
 afterwards passed which declared that Westminster should still remain 
 a cathedral, under a dean and chapter, but be subordinate to the diocese 
 of London. 
 
 4. Toek. 
 
 The bishopric of York was founded by Paulinus, one of the mis- 
 sionaries sent by Pope Gregory to England, as early as A.D. 627. 
 Pope Honorius sent this prelate the pall in the year 634, and granted 
 the archbishops of Canterbury and York the mutual power of ordaining 
 each other. The first cathedral at York was dedicated to St. Peter, 
 and the arms of the see, the crossed keys, are the well known emblems 
 of the apostle. 
 
 Two massy keys he bore, of metals twain 
 The golden opes, the iron shuts amain. 
 
 The arms of the archiepiscopal sees were originally exactly similar ; 
 the present arms of the see of York were adopted in the time of Cardinal 
 Wolscy. 
 
 A bishopric was established at Hexham, in Northumberland, in 
 
INTEODtrCTION. 
 
 xi 
 
 A.D. 678, which continued till the year 821, ten bishops having, in 
 that period, successively held the see. The town of Hexham, with the 
 country about, consisting of five townships, called Hexhamshire, was 
 afterwards given by Henry I. to the archiepiscopal see of York, and 
 had the reputation of being a county palatinate ; by act of parliament, 
 in 1545, the jurisdiction of Hexhamshire was taken from the arch- 
 bishopric, and united to the county of Northumberland. 
 
 The archbishop, as primate of England, has the province of York 
 under his care, consisting of the bishoprics of Carlisle, Chester, and 
 Durham, as well as that of Sodor and Man, the bishop of which is not 
 a peer of parliament. 
 
 The extent of jurisdiction, although less in England, was formerly 
 largest in Britain, the archbishopric having the entire kingdom of 
 Scotland subject to it. The bishoprics of Lincoln, Lichfield, and 
 Worcester, were taken from York ; and it appears that the archbishop 
 had formerly all the bishoprics northward of the river Humber subject to 
 his authority, including the bishoprics of Eipon, Hexsham, Liudisfarn, 
 the bishopric of Whitehaven, and all the bishoprics of Scotland and the 
 Orcades. The last continued till the wars in the reigns of the three 
 Edwards, when the Scots bishops threw off their subjection.'® The 
 same authority states, that the kings of England have always allowed 
 the priority to Canterbury, on the principle that a duarchy in the church 
 was altogether inconsistent with a monarchy in the state. 
 
 5. Dueham. 
 
 A bishopric was originally established by Oswald, the Anglo-Saxon 
 king of Northumberland, A.D. 635, who appointed Aidan, a monk of 
 Icolmkill, the first bishop. St. Cuthbert, who is often styled the apostle 
 of the north, received episcopal consecration from the archbishop of 
 York, as the sixth bishop of the Northumbrian Saxons. St. Cuthbert 
 afterwards procured a grant fromEgfrid, king of Northumberland, of all 
 the lands between the rivers Wear and Tyne, and retired to Lindisfarn, 
 since called Holy Island, where he founded a monastery, the church of 
 which became his cathedral. The see of Lindisfarn continued in esteem 
 till Bishop Eardulph was obliged to leave it for fear of the Danes, in 
 the year 875, when he fixed his episcopal chair at Chester le Street, on 
 a branch of the river Wear, where it remained nearly two hundred 
 years, but was finally removed to the city of Durham, a site unrivalled 
 by any in the kingdom, in the year 1020, at which time the bones of 
 Drake’s History of York, p. 408. 
 
INTEODTTCTIOK. 
 
 xii 
 
 St. Cutlibert were deposited in the Cathedral originally dedicated to his 
 memory ; King Henry VIII. ordered it to be named the Cathedral 
 Church of Clirist and the Blessed Virgin. The arms of this see are 
 those of King Oswald, the original founder, in whose memory they have 
 been retained. 
 
 6. Norwich. 
 
 A bishopric was founded by Sigibert, king of the East Angles, and 
 the episcopal see placed at Soham, in Cambridgeshire, A. D. 630, but 
 immediately after removed to Dunwich, in Suffolk, by St. Felix, the 
 first bishop of the East Angles. The see was divided into two bishoprics 
 by Bisus the fourth bishop, when North Elmham, m Norfolk, was made 
 a seat of the bishops of Norfolk ; and Dunwich, a seat of the bishops of 
 Suffolk. A union of these dioceses took place under the bishops of 
 Elmham, about A. D. 945, whence the episcopal chair was removed to 
 Thetford, in 1075, in consequence of a determination of a council held 
 by Archbishop Lanfranc, that all bishops’ sees should be placed in the 
 most eminent towns in their diocese. 
 
 The see was translated to Norwich by Bishop Herbert de Losing, 
 formerly abbot of Eamsey, A.D. 1094, who purchased the bishopric of 
 King William Eufus for the sum of £1900. The arms of the see, 
 three golden mitres in an azure field, allude to the union of the 
 bishoprics of Dunwich, Elmham, and Thetford, in that of Norwich. 
 
 7. Lincoln 
 
 A bishopric was founded at Dorchester, in Oxfordshire, A. D. 635, 
 by King Cynegils, who appointed Birinus, sent by Pope Honorius to 
 convert the West Saxons, bishop of Mercia. In the year 678, a 
 bishopric was erected at Sidnacester, or Stow, in Lincolnshire, and in 
 the following year another at Leicester, but both these sees were again 
 united to Dorchester about A. D. 949, which continued the seat of the 
 bishop, till removed to the city of Lincoln, in the year 1070, by Bishop 
 Eemigius, a Norman, and one of the followers of William the Conqueror. 
 The arms of the see are evidently composed of those of the king at this 
 period, having the Virgin Mary, to whom the Cathedral Church was 
 dedicated, in the chief, or placed above the insignia of the king. 
 
 Out of this diocese the bishoprics of Oseney and Peterborough were 
 taken by King Henry VIII., in the year 1541. 
 
 8. Winchester. 
 
 The bishopric of Winchester was founded by King Cynegils, in 636, 
 who fixed the Cathedral in this city, the capital of the West Saxon 
 
INTEODTTCTION, 
 
 xiii 
 
 kingdom. The king also endowed the see with all the lands within seven 
 miles of the church, which was dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul. 
 The arms of this see, a sword between two keys, the united emblems of 
 the two apostles, are commemorative of this dedication. 
 
 9. LiCHriELD AND COVENTRY. 
 
 A bishopric was founded at Lichfield by Oswy, king of Mercia, 
 A.D. 656. The see became so wealthy, that King OflTa, in the year 
 7S0, prevailed on Pope Adrian to constitute Lichfield an archbishopric, 
 with authority over the sees of Winchester, Hereford, Leicester, Sid- 
 nacester, Elmham, and Dunwich ; that title was however laid aside on 
 the death of Ofia. In the year 1075, Bishop Peter removed his episcopal 
 chair to Chester, and his successor. Bishop Eobert de Lindsey, translated 
 his see from Chester to Coventry, in 1102. Bishop Hugh de Novant, 
 in the year 1186, removed the see again to Lichfield, but it was agreed 
 that the bishop should derive his title from both places, Coventry and 
 Lichfield, Coventry having the precedence. Also that the convents 
 should elect a bishop alternately, and that they should both make one 
 chapter to the bishop, in which the prior of Coventry should be the 
 head. At the dissolution of the priory of Coventry, in the year 1538, 
 the style of the bishop remained the same ; but an act of parliament 
 was then passed, constituting the dean and chapter of Lichfield the sole 
 chapter to the bishop. The arms of this see are blazoned on a red and 
 white field, and consist of a golden cross potent, or cross of Jerusalem, 
 between four small crosses, not unlike the ensign borne by Godfrey of 
 Bouillon, chief of the first crusade, and have reference to the five wounds 
 of Christ, with which the altars of the primitive churches were always 
 marked. The bishopric of Chester was, in 1541, taken out of this 
 diocese. 
 
 10. Hereford. 
 
 An episcopal see was first established at Hereford in the year 680, 
 when Bishop Putta, who was translated from Eochester, was made the 
 first bishop of Hereford. The arms of the bishopric are those of St. 
 Thomas Cantilupe, forty-fourth bishop of Hereford, and also chancellor 
 of England. In memory of this saint’s miraculous powers, his arms, 
 the same as the baronial family of Cantilupe, from which he was 
 descended, were adopted as the armorial bearings of the see. 
 
 11. Worcester. 
 
 The bishopric of Worcester was originally founded by Ethelred, 
 king of Mercia, in the year 680. The bishops of Worcester were the 
 
INTEODTJCTIOir. 
 
 xiv 
 
 peculiar chaplains of the archbishop of Canterbury, aud, by their 
 office, performed the mass in all assemblies of the clergy where the 
 metropolitan was present. The arms of the see refer to this important 
 service, and consist of ten torteaux on a white field : the torteaux 
 of heraldry, representing the holy wafers used in the sacrament, are 
 called wastalls in ancient blazonry, and were thus adopted by the 
 bishops as an official badge or ensign. 
 
 Out of this diocese the bishopric of Gloucester was taken, in the year 
 1541. 
 
 12. Salisbtjey. 
 
 The first establishment of this see was at Sherhourn, in Dorsetshire, 
 A.D. 705. The diocese then extended over all that part of the kingdom 
 which is now divided into the dioceses of Salisbury, Bristol, Wells, and 
 Exeter. The bishoprics of Wells and Exeter were first dismembered 
 from it, and another see was erected at Wilton, in Wiltshire, the seat 
 of which bishop appears to have been sometimes at Ramsbury, and 
 sometimes at Sunning, both in Berkshire. The see of Wilton having 
 had eleven bishops, was again united to Sherbourn by Bishop Herman, 
 who abolished the bishopric of Wilton, because the monks of Malmsbury 
 would not suffer him to remove it to their abbey. 
 
 It was during the reign of William the Conqueror that the episcopal 
 see was removed to Old Sarum, where there already existed a dean. 
 The patronage of the dean ffvas translated to Sherbourn and Sunning, 
 and Bishop Herman, who had before held the sees of Wilton and 
 Sherbourn, was installed into that of Sarum. ^ Bishop Richard Poore 
 brought the see from Old Sarum to Salisbury,^® in the reign of 
 
 The editor solicits indulgence from the reader, in this note, that he may exculpate 
 himself from a charge of error. In the Gentleman’s Magazine for February, 1835, the 
 date of the foundation of this cathedral was stated to have been omitted, and othei as- 
 sertions were made equally devoid of truth, to which it was thought necessary to send 
 the following letter to the editor of the magazine in reply : — 
 
 “ Sir, — As the acknowledged writer of a description of Salisbury Cathedral, al- 
 “luded to as ‘the few pages of letter-press’ in the last number of your magazine, I 
 “ entreat you will forthwith do me the justice to correct some errors in your notice, 
 “ seemingly not unintentional. In my brief account the date of the foundation is cer- 
 “ tainly not omitted, vide p. 1. The number of marks which the building is recorded 
 “ to have cost is also rightly stated at 40,000, the same amount as given in all previous 
 “ histories of the Cathedral, and not 400,000 as you have misrepresented.” The letter 
 concluded with an apology to the readers of thfe magazine for troubling them with the 
 correction. 
 
 No other notice was taken of this letter by the editor of the magazine than calling 
 it a complaint in a subsequent number. If such, it was not of want of candour, but 
 of downright misrepresentation. 
 
IKTEODtrCTIOIT. 
 
 XV 
 
 Henry 111.,'^“ and his successor dedicated the Cathedral Church to the 
 Virgin Mary. The arms of the bishopric, emblematical of this dedi- 
 cation, consist of the Virgin Mary and the infant J esus. 
 
 A part of this diocese was granted to the see of Bristol upon its 
 establishment in 1542. 
 
 13. Chichestee. 
 
 Wilfrid, archbishop of York, having been expelled from his diocese 
 by King Egfrid, was received by Edilwalch, king of the South Saxons, 
 who granted him Selsey, a promontory in the British Channel, where he 
 built a church, which he governed as Abbot ; Eadbert his successor was 
 consecrated bishop of Selsey, A.D. 711. 
 
 Stigand, chaplain to King William the Conqueror, and the twenty- 
 third bishop of Selsey, in 1071, removed his see to Chichester, or Cissan 
 Caster, a city built by King Cissa. The arms of this see a prester, or 
 Presbyter John, is seemingly born in allusion to the power of the church, 
 the book in hand, but the sword, or power, in the mouth, is emblematical 
 of the eloquence necessary to enforce the doctrine in the book by which 
 the church is maintained. 
 
 14. Exetee. 
 
 A bishopric of Devonshire, was founded on the division of the see of 
 Sherbourn, A.D. 910, when Aidulf, the first bishop, fixed his episcopal 
 chair at Crediton, on the banks of the river Credy. 
 
 A bishopric of Cornwall was at the same time established, when 
 Athelstan the bishop fixed his see at St. Germans. 
 
 Levingus, who became bishop of Devonshire, in the year 1032, after 
 the death of Burwold, the last Bishop of Cornwall, united the two sees. 
 
 King Edward the Confessor, in the year 1050, resolved to consolidate 
 the pontifical chair at the city of Exeter, in the monastery of the blessed 
 Peter, prince of the apostles, appointed Leofric, bishop of Crediton, 
 
 It appears that every book, but one, embracing an account of Salisbury Cathedral, 
 has been assailed in the same reckless manner, and that a great many pages of the 
 magazine have been occupied in this unworthy object. The inquisitive reader may 
 turn to the Gentleman’s Magazine, vol. Ixxxv. p. 35, where an inhabitant of Salisbury 
 has given proof of the truth of what is here stated. 
 
 The popular tradition of the precis spot being determined by an arrow shot by a 
 bowman from the ramparts of Old Sarum, is humorously illustrated in the Salisbury 
 Ballad, written by Dr. "Walter Pope, one of the chaplains to Seth Ward, bishop of Salis- 
 bury, in the reign of Charles II. 
 
INTEODTJCTIOIf. 
 
 xvi 
 
 and his successors after liim for ever, to be bishops there,**, in these 
 words ; — “ I will therefore the see to be thei’e, that Cornwall, with its 
 churches, and Devonshire with its, be together in one episcopate, and 
 be governed by one bishop. So do I Edward place this privilege with 
 my own hand upon the altar of St. Peter, and leading the prelate Leofric 
 by the right arm, and my queen Editha leading him by the left, do 
 place him in the episcopal chair, my dukes and noble cousins, with 
 my chaplains being present.” The monastery of St. Peter to 
 which the united sees were thus transferred, and its conventual church 
 erected into a cathedral, was founded by King Athelstan, in the 
 year 932. 
 
 The arms of the see consist of a representation of the crossed keys, 
 the emblem of the patron saint, and a sword, indicative of the power of 
 the bishop. 
 
 15. Bath anu Wells. 
 
 A bishopric was founded at Wells by King Edward the Elder 
 A.D. 909, upon a division of the diocese of Sherbourn, when Adhelm* 
 abbot of Glastonbury, was consecrated the first bishop, by Archbishop 
 Plegmund. 
 
 Soon after the accession of William Eufus, a change was made in 
 the state of this see by Bishop John de Villula, a native of Tours, in 
 Prance. This prelate having originally practised at Bath as a physician, 
 obtained affluence, and with the profits of his profession, purchased the 
 see of Wells. In the year 1092 he transferred the episcopal seat to 
 Bath, which, with all its privileges, he had also purchased of the king. 
 He had procured a grant of Bath Abbey from King William Eufus 
 previously to his removal of the see, for which removal he obtained the 
 king’s consent by bribery, or, according to Matthew Paris, the his- 
 torian, by “ anointing his hand with white ointment.” 
 
 Great dissensions arose between the canons of AVells and the monks 
 of Bath respecting the change of residence and right of election ; even- 
 tually the dispute was referred to Bishop Eobert, who in a decree made 
 about 1139, enjoined that the bishops should take their titles from both 
 churches, and be called bishops of Bath and Wells. That the monks of 
 Bath and the canons of Wells should, on a vacancy of the see, appoint 
 an equal number of delegates, by whose united votes the bishop should 
 be chosen, the dean of Wells being the returning officer; that the 
 bishop elect should be enthroned in both churches, but first at Bath ; 
 
 The charter of King Edward is printed in Caley’s edition of Dugdale’s Monasti- 
 con, vol. ii. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 XVll 
 
 that both these communities should form the bishop’s chapter ; and that 
 all grants should be confirmed under these respective seals. 
 
 Savaric, Archdeacon of Northampton, was elected bishop in 1192 ; 
 this prelate was related to Henry, the Emperor of Germany, who, to 
 oblige his kinsman, made it one of the conditions of the release of Kin® 
 Kichard I., that the wealthy abbey of Glastonbury should be annexed 
 to the see of Bath and Wells, and the Abbot of Glastonbury was then 
 promoted to the bishopric of Worcester. Bishop Savaric, having obtained 
 his desire, transferred his episcopal seat to Glastonbury. 
 
 During the episcopacy of Joceline of Wells, the monks of Glastonbury 
 obtained a dissolution of their union with the bishopric, and Joceline 
 afterwards resumed the title of Bishop of Bath and Wells, which has 
 ever since been used by the successive prelates of this see ; but in the 
 reign of Henry VIII. an act of parliament was passed for the dean and 
 chapter of Wells to make one chapter for the bishop. 
 
 The ancient arms of the united bishopric of Bath and Wells were 
 judiciously composed from the bearings of the two sees ; but the arms 
 now used is the coat of the see of Wells alone, a saltier, or Saint 
 Andrew’s cross, to which saint the Cathedral church is dedicated. 
 
 16. Ely. 
 
 The abbey of Ely, one of the richest monasteries of England, was 
 founded by Etheldreda, daughter of Anna, king of the East Angles, 
 in the year 673. This lady became the first abbess, and was afterwards 
 canonized. In the reign of Henry I. the revenues of the monastery, 
 originally very considerable, had greatly increased, and the “golden 
 rhetoric” of the abbot prevailing with the king, Ely was made a bishopric’ 
 and is the only instance of the conversion of an abbey into a see. In 
 the year 1109 a diocese, comprising the Isle of Ely and the whole of the 
 county of Cambridge, taken out of the jurisdiction of the see of Lincoln, 
 was formed, when the manors belonging to the church were divided by 
 the Bishop of Ely between himself and the monks. The bishop was 
 accused of taking the larger share, and it appears to have been in a pro- 
 portion of more than three to one in the bishop’s favour. 
 
 The Bishop of Lincoln’s consent to the erection of the see of Ely was 
 obtained by a grant to him and his successors of the manors of Bugden, 
 Biggleswade, and Spalding, which originally belonged to the abbots 
 of Ely. 
 
 The arms of this see seem to be derived from those of the kings of the 
 East Angles, three crowns, implying the regality of Norfolk, Suffolk, 
 
 0 
 
xviii 
 
 INTEODITCTIOK. 
 
 and Grentebridge, or Cambridgeshire, and were probably assumed in 
 memory of the original founder of the abbey. 
 
 17. Caelisle. 
 
 The ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Carlisle, and a circuit of fifteen 
 miles round the city, was granted to St. Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarn, 
 and his successors, by King Egfrid, A.D. 685. 
 
 In the year 1133 King Henry I. erected Carlisle into a bishop’s see, 
 giving at the same time a jurisdiction of part of the counties of Cumber- 
 land and Westmoreland, in the province of York. The same King made 
 Athewold, prior of St. Oswald’s, the first Bishop of Carlisle. 
 
 The arms of the see are the same as those of the ancient priory of 
 Augustine Canons, a black cross, charged with a golden mitre in the 
 centre, and borne on a white field. 
 
 18. OxEOED. 
 
 The see oi Oxford constituted part of the diocese of Lincoln until the 
 year 1512, when King Henry VIII. erected a bishopric, which he endowed 
 with the estates of the dissolved monasteries of Oseney and Abingdon, 
 assigning at the same time the abbey church of Oseney as a Cathedral to 
 the diocese. The abbey, situated in the suburbs of the present city of 
 Oxford, or Oseneyford, was founded by Eobert D’OIley, lord high con- 
 stable, in the reign of Henry I., and the last Abbot of Oseney was 
 appointed bishop of the new see. 
 
 The king, in the year 1516, translated the episcopal see to the Cathe- 
 dral Church of Christ in Oxford, and granted some of the estates to the 
 dean and chapter, which had been appropriated by Cardinal Wolsey to 
 the maintenance of his college.^^ 
 
 The arms of this bishopric, an ox passing a ford, and having in chief 
 three demi ladies crowned, seems to be a punning allusion to the name 
 of the city, and to some circumstance in the legend of Saint Frideswide, 
 the founder of the priory. 
 
 19. Peteeeoeotjgh. 
 
 The see of Peterborough was erected by King Henry VIII. in 1512, 
 and was wholly taken from the diocese of Lincoln. It was endowed with 
 the estates of a monastery founded by Peada, son of Penda, king of 
 Mercia, at Medehamstead ; the abbey church being dedicated to Saint 
 Peter, the city was afterwards named Peterborough. 
 
 In “ Britton’s Cathedrals’* it is affirmed, that The See of Oxford originated 
 with Cardinal Wolsey, although it was ostensibly founded by King Henry VIII., an 
 assertion equal to saying that “ Tenterden Steeple was the cause of Goodwin Sands,” 
 Wolsey having certainly been dead at least sixteen years before the see was translated 
 to Christ’s Church. 
 
INTEODUCTION. 
 
 zix 
 
 Tha crossed keys, the emblem of Saint Peter, are borne, as the arms 
 of the see, between four crosses : the dean and chapter being lords of the 
 manor, the arms of the deanery are the same as tliose of the bishopric. 
 
 20. Chestee. 
 
 The bishopric of Chester was anciently part of the diocese of Lichfield, 
 the bishop of which removed his seat to this city in the year 1075, and 
 made Saint John’s Church his Cathedral. His successors were some- 
 times styled Bishops of Chester. 
 
 Chester was not erected into a distinct bishopric until after the dis- 
 solution of monasteries, when King Henry VIII. fixed the see of a 
 bishop here, and translated Bishop Bird from Bangor ; at the same time 
 the king appointed the abbey church of Saint Werburgh for a Cathedral, 
 when the shrine of that saint was made into a throne for the bishop. 
 The king named it the Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin, and 
 Thomas Clerk, the last abbot, was made the first dean. The king 
 added this bishopric to the province of Canterbury, but soon afterward, 
 translated it to that of York. By a singlar circumstance which 
 occurred not long after the original grant, the dean and chapter lost 
 their estates. 
 
 The arms of this see, three mitres, on a red field, are probably allusive 
 of the three bishoprics of Chester, Lichfield, and Coventry, once united. 
 
 21. GtLOTJCESTEE. 
 
 The see of Gloucester was one of six erected by King Henry VIII. 
 in the year 1542, and was formerly part of the diocese of Worcester. 
 By his letters patent the king ordained that the church of the dissolved 
 monastery of Saint Peter, at Gloucester, should be for ever a Cathedral 
 Church, and see episcopal ; and that the town of Gloucester should be 
 henceforth called the city of Gloucester. The king at the same time 
 nominated John Wakeman, Abbot of Tewkesbury, one of his chaplains, 
 the first bishop, and endowed the bishopric with the estates of the monas- 
 tery founded A.D. 681, in honour of St. Peter the Apostle. 
 
 The arms of this bishopric are the emblems of the patron saint, derived 
 from the metaphorical expression of Christ, recorded in the gospel of 
 Saint Matthew.” 
 
 23 The power of the keys implied the power assumed by the Pope of passing 
 judgment on departed souls. Pope Julius II., whose disposition was more suitable to 
 a soldier than to a pastor of the church, is described as throwing Saint Peter’s keys 
 into the Tiber, exclaiming — 
 
 The sword of Paul must us defend from foes, 
 
 Situ Peter’s keys serve not to bear off blows. 
 
XX INTEODTJCTIOIT. 
 
 22. Bristol. 
 
 This bishopric was founded by King Henry VIII. in 1452, and was 
 endowed with the revenues of the dissolved abbey of Saint Augustine, in 
 Bristol, the church of which was made a Cathedral. During the greater 
 part of the reign of Elizabeth, the see was held in commendam by the 
 Bishop of Gloucester. 
 
 The arms of Saint Augustine’s ^bbey are now those of the see of 
 Bristol ; the same heraldical charge, three crown in pale, is assigned to 
 Edmund the Elder, one of the Anglo-Saxon kings of England, who was 
 knied at Buckle church, near this city. 
 
 There are four bishoprics in Wales, the origin of which is uncertain. 
 The see of Saint David’s was once the metropolitan see of Wales. 
 Archbishop Sampson, the last, removed on account of a pestilence to 
 Dol, in Brittany, carrying the pall with him. The Welsh bishops still 
 received consecration from the Bishop of Saint David’s till the time of 
 Bishop Bernard, chancellor to Alice of Brabant, queen of Henry I., who 
 first submitted himself to the see of Canterbury. 
 
 The see of Llandaff is supposed to have been founded by Saint Du- 
 britius, in the early part of the sixth century, at which time it is said to 
 have been a wealthy bishopric ; but the revenues were diminished by 
 Bishop Dunstan, at the Beformation. 
 
 The Cathedral Church of Baugor is dedicated to Saint Daniel, who 
 was bishop here in the early part of the sixth century, but the founder 
 of the see is unknown. Many of the estates were alienated by Bishop 
 Bulkeley, about the time of the Beformation. 
 
 The bishopric of Saint Asaph was founded by Saint Kentigern, Bishop 
 of Glasgow, and his successor in the see was Saint Asaph, to whom the 
 church is dedicated. The revenues of this wealthy see were wasted by 
 Bishop Warton, previously Abbot of Bermondsey, and who was after- 
 wards translated to Hereford. 
 
 The western isles of Britain, divided into two clusters, were in the 
 Norwegian language, called Sudor and Nordor, signifying southern and 
 northern, the Isle of Man was included in the southern or Sudor. The 
 two bishoprics of Sodor and Man were united under the Norwegian kings, 
 and continued so until the Isle of Man was conquered by the English, 
 since which time the Bishop of Sodor and Man has retained the united 
 title, and the Scottish bishops were styled Bishops of the Isles. 
 
 By an ordinance of King Henry YIII. the bishopric of Sodor and Man 
 was declared to be in the province of York, 
 
INDEX 
 
 TO THE 
 
 ILLTJSTEATIONS OF THE ENGLISH CATHEDEALS. 
 
 VOLUME I. 
 
 Entrance to the Chapter-House at Salisbury , . frontispiece. 
 
 gbali'sliurs ©atfieliral. 
 
 Page 
 
 View of the "West Front 1 
 
 Ground Plan , • . , . 4 
 
 View of the Northern side 6 
 
 South-Eastern view 8 
 
 The Lady Chapel 14 
 
 View from the Southern to the Northern Transept . . .16 
 
 ©antcrturg ©atjcliral. 
 
 South-'W’estern view ^ . .17 
 
 View from Trinity Chapel looking westward . . . .21 
 
 View of the Eastern end 26 
 
 Ground plan 27 
 
 The Undercroft * ... 28 
 
 View in the Nave 32 
 
 Becket’s Crown .34 
 
 View from the Cloisters 36 
 
 The Chapter-House 37 
 
 View of Saint Anselm’s Chapel .......38 
 
 South-Eastern view . 
 
 The Crypt 
 
 View of the Chapter-House 
 
 Ground plan 
 
 Western Front 
 
 Southern Transept ....... 
 
 View of the Nave 
 
 View from the Southern to the Northern Transept . 
 
 The Choir looking Eastward 
 
 The Northern Transept, Central Tower, aud Chapter-House 
 
 . 41 
 . 42 
 . 43 
 . 45 
 . 47 
 c 48 
 . 51 
 . 62 
 . 63 
 . 64 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Raul’s ®at5E5Jral. 
 
 Page 
 
 View of fhe Southern Eront from Southwark Bridge . . .65 
 
 Ground plan 70 
 
 The "Western Front ......... 72 
 
 North-Eastern view . . , 74 
 
 The Crypt, Monument of Admiral Viscount Nelson under the Domo 75 
 Interior of the Dome looking towards the Northern Transept . 76 
 The Nave and Choir ......... 78 
 
 SSIcIIs ©atfieljral. 
 
 North-Eastern view of the Cathedral from the road to Bath. . 81 
 
 Western Front, showing the Northern Porch and Transept . . 84 
 
 South-Eastern view ........ 86 
 
 Ground plan 89 
 
 The Nave .90 
 
 View from the Northern Transept 93 
 
 The Lady Chapel 98 
 
 Entrance to the Crypt ..... • • 101 
 
 The Chapter-House, interior .... . . 102 
 
 View of the Chapter-House and Eastern Gate, with the Gallery 
 leading to the Vicar’s Close ......* 104 
 
 Hotjestcr ©at§t&ral. 
 
 North-Western view 105 
 
 Ground plan 106 
 
 Western Doorway 113 
 
 View of the Nave 115 
 
 View of the Crypt 117 
 
 View of the Doorway leading into the Chapter-House . . 118 
 
 Northern Transept . 120 
 
 Mtncfiester ©at^tiJral. 
 
 View of the Northern Transept - 121 
 
 The Northern Transept, interior 125 
 
 South-Eastern view 127 
 
 Ground plan . 128 
 
 Western Front . • 129 
 
 The Nave looking east 130 
 
 View across the Nave, showing the Font and Wykeham’s Monu- 
 ment 131 
 
 View of the Choir ......... 134 
 
 Southern Aisle of Choir, showing Bishop Fox’s Monument . . 138 
 
 View in the Presbytery, showing the Chantries of Bishop Wayn- 
 flete and Cardinal Beaufort 140 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The Cathedral Church of Salisbury is distinguished as the most 
 uniform structure, as well as being the most perfect and original 
 example in the whole series of magnificent edifices, devoted to 
 the choral service of the church, in England. The erection of 
 this church, at the commencement of the reign of Henry III., 
 marks a decided epoch in English architecture, the very beautiful 
 pointed style having then been brought to its utmost perfection. 
 Excepting in the singular instance of Westminter Abbey Church, 
 erected in the same reign, no comparison with that of Salisbury 
 has ever been adduced, and this Cathedral, from its importance and 
 magnitude, stands unrivalled as a point, whence the architectural 
 antiquary may safely draw a conclusion, regarding the precise 
 period of the great change in the ecclesiastical style of building. 
 
 A very experienced critic has given it as his opinion, that this 
 interesting church, so remarkable in its design for purity, simplicity, 
 and grandeur, holds the same high rank in English architecture 
 which the Parthenon bears in the Grecian.* 
 
 The present Cathedral Church was founded by Bishop Richard 
 Poore, A.D. 1220, the fifth year of the reign of Henry III. It is 
 said that an inscription on the bishop’s tomb stated that the church 
 was forty years in building, and that it was finished in the year 
 1260.* 
 
 It appears that his predecessor in the see, Bishop Herbert 
 Poore, had been induced to make application to the king for leave 
 to remove the Cathedral Church from Old Sarum, which was 
 granted, and the ground had been fixed upon as a proper site 
 for the intended edifice, during his prelacy, but it remained for 
 Bishop Richard Poore to carry the magnificent plan into effect, 
 
 ' E. I. C. in the Gentleman’s Magazine for May, 1830. 
 
 * In the northern transept of the Cathedral is a monumemt or cenotaph of Purbeck 
 marble, ascribed by tradition to Bishop Poore, the munificent founder, and which was 
 removed from the northern side of the altar. This bishop was in reality buried in the 
 Cathedral of Durham, to which see he was translated in 1225, His heart was deposited 
 in the priory church of Tarrant Crawford, in Dorsetshire, the place of his nativity, and 
 where he founded a nunnery. Bishop Poore died in 1237, and his epitaph, in old Latin, 
 will be found in Antiq. Sarisburiensis, p. 137. 
 
 VOL. I. B 
 
2 SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 and to the designs made under his inspection the whole merit of 
 the building is certainly due. 
 
 The first establishment of the see was at Sherbourn, in Dorset- 
 shire, A. D. 705, when the diocese had episcopal jurisdiction over 
 all the counties which now constitute the dioceses of Salisbury, 
 Bristol, Wells, and Exeter. 
 
 After the death of Ethelwald, the thirteenth bishop of Sher- 
 bourn, this diocese was divided into several sees. Wells, Exeter, 
 etc. A.D. 905, by Plegmund, Archbishop of Canterbury, at which 
 time there was another see established at Wilton, in Wiltshire, 
 the capital of Wessex, in the reign of Edward the Elder, the son 
 and successor of Alfred the Great. The seat of the bishop was 
 also at Ramsbury and at Sunning. The see of Wilton, after it 
 had eleven bishops, was once more united to Sherbourn in the year 
 1056, and at the same time the see was removed to Old Sarum, 
 the Sorbiodunum of the Romans, a place of great importance. 
 A Cathedral was there founded, and completed by Bishop Osmund, 
 but within sixty years afterwards the see was once more removed, 
 and the city of Old Sarum became gradually deserted.® 
 
 Godwyn’s account of the foundation of the present building, 
 written in the quaint style of Elizabeth’s reign, is brief and satis- 
 factory ; by this it appears that it was performed with considerable 
 ceremony. In his life of Bishop Richard Poore he says, This 
 bishop considering the inconvenient situation of his Cathedral see, 
 in a place so dry and bleake, as also wearied with the often inso- 
 lences and malapert demeanour of the soldiers that guarded the 
 earl’s castle,^ forsooke the same, and sending for divers famous 
 
 * Owing, it was supposed, to the extreme heat of the summer of 1834, the founda- 
 tions of the original Cathedral at Old Sarum became distinctly defined, so as to give a 
 perfect idea of the ground plan, which was in the form of a cross, and its various dimen- 
 sions. It may not be uninteresting to compare the dimensions with those of the present 
 structure ; the extreme length appears to have been about 270 feet ; the nave 150 feet, 
 and the choir 60 feet. The breadth of the nave with its aisles was 72 feet, each aisle 
 being 18 feet wide. The length of the transept was 150 feet, and its breadth 60 feet. 
 This discovery proved that the Cathedral stood on the north-western side of the fortress, 
 as had been conjectured, and that it must have overspread a very large p irtion of the 
 space between the bank running northward, and the path leading to the postern gate 
 towards Stratford. 
 
 * The disputes of the castellans and the clergy, which arose from the seizure of the 
 castle by King Stephen, were carried to a great height, and even caused the death of 
 Bishop Roger in 1139. 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 3 
 
 workeraen from beyond the seas, began the foundation of a new 
 church in a place then called Meryfield.* Pandulph, the pope’s 
 i.egate, laid the first five stones ; the first for the Pope ;® the second 
 for the king ; the third for the Earl of Salisbury;’ the fourth for 
 the countesse and the fifth for the bishop. In this work,” continues 
 the reverend author, “ though the bishop had greate helpe of the 
 king, and divers of the nobility, yet was he so farre from ending 
 it, as thirty years after his departure, it was scarcily finished.”® 
 
 From this time the work was rapidly carried on, and the edifice, 
 one of the most splendid memorials of the age in which it was 
 erected, was sufficiently completed in the course of five years to 
 have divine service celebrated in the choir. The Cathedral was 
 consecrated on Michaelmas day, 1225, by Stephen Langton, Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, when all the canons were cited to attend the 
 solemnity 
 
 The bishop of Salisbury had himself previously consecrated 
 three altars in the church, one in the eastern part to the Holy 
 Trinity and All Saints, one in the northern part to the honour of 
 St. Peter, and another in the southern part in honour of St. Stephen 
 and the rest of the martyrs.’® 
 
 Three days afterwards Bishop Poore was translated to the see 
 of Durham, but committed the care of the works at Salisbury to 
 Elias de Derham, who had from the first acted as architect, and 
 was still engaged in the superintendence of them. 
 
 Robert Bingham succeeded to the see of Salisbury in 1229, and 
 like the founder, applied himself with great diligence to the progress 
 of the building. He is said to have obtained a royal grant that 
 the produce of all fines due to the chapter should be applied 
 towards defraying the expenses of the church. 
 
 The bishop carried on the building about eighteen years, but 
 it was by no means completed at his death, which took place in 
 November 1246, although he had incurred a debt of 1700 marks. 
 
 ® Part of his own manor, situated about two miles southward from the castle. 
 
 ® Honorius III. 
 
 ? 'William Longspee, the natural son of King Henry II. bv fair llosamond. 
 
 ' She was Ela, daughter and heiress of William De Eureux, formerly Earl of 
 Salisbury. 
 
 * Godwyn’s Lives of the Bishops, p. 277. 
 
 About twelve other altars were erected in this Cathedral at different times. 
 
4 
 
 SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 William of York, a bishop high in favour with King Henry III., 
 was appointed to this see in 1247, and after promoting the building 
 with great anxiety for nine years, died in 1256. 
 
 Giles of Bridport, his successor in the see of Salisbury, had 
 the honour of completing this memorable undertaking, and, in the 
 second year of his elevation to the bishopric, had the satisfaction 
 of seeing this splendid fabric finished. The bishop appointed the 
 30th day of September, 1258, as a grand festival for the solemn 
 dedication of the church to the Virgin Mary. The ceremony was 
 performed by Boniface, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the presence 
 of a large concourse of the nobility and neighbouring gentry. It 
 thus appears that, up to this time, it had taken about thirty years 
 to build the present Cathedral, and the expenses incurred during 
 its progress are stated in an account delivered to King Henry III. 
 to have amounted to 40,000 marks, or about 26,666Z. 13s. 4(Z. 
 present money." 
 
 In the same year that the edifice was consecrated, the bodies of 
 three bishops of Old Sarum, St. Osmond, Roger, and Joceline, 
 were removed from the old Cathedral and deposited in this church. 
 
 The plan of the Cathedral is that of the Greek cross, a form of 
 very early introduction ; the church of St. Sophia, at Constantino- 
 ple, erected in the sixth century after Christ, is in that form, which 
 very happily combines variety with unity, and beauty with conve- 
 nience. It is not easy to understand the remark made by a very 
 intelligent writer on the subject, that the form of the cross, adopted 
 in the plans of churches, is much more favourable to superstition 
 than to beauty.'* It may readily be asserted, that the great and 
 essential beauty of cathedral architecture arises, in a great measure, 
 from this very form having been generally adopted in the ground 
 plan. A critic of the highest authority, and whose correct taste 
 has never been questioned, uses almost these words in proof of his 
 coincidence in that opinion. The transepts vary the long line of 
 the building, by a conflexion of lines and angles, and preserve by 
 the partial exposure of parapets and pinnacles, the appearance of 
 extent beyond what the eye can immediately comprehend, which is 
 
 The greater part of the tower, the spire, the chapter-house, and other portions of 
 the building were erected subsequently to this period. 
 
 ** The Rev. James Dallaway., 
 
AlA ioel AMiole Length 
 
 iSALISlBi'LIiE'r (CA^'HIS AIEIAX . 
 
 liKFKHENCK TO THE MONUMt'-Nr ’ 
 
 JOO 
 
 Scale of Feet 
 
 RFFERENi'K TO TUK J*LAN'. 
 
 AAA xYave S'UsFjis/es 
 Ji N'octh Porch 
 C Consistxiry Court 
 J ) F. Trrituc7)t SRl^-Ic 
 K SJJ'’ ‘ ])9 
 F 7'on'er 
 
 Choir SFutes 
 
 H Small F'. Trans cj)t S. 4 isle 
 I 0^ .V, ^ !)? 
 
 K Lad)'- Chapi'l 
 L MiLnunentRoom 
 M hloister Sard 
 N Oiapter House 
 
 1 Bis h F Jouli/U' 
 k Bis/if Rot/cr 
 
 3 liish FlfcancJuanp 
 
 4 John de Montaeuie 
 
 !> Rol-^I.ord Llimatai'oid 
 C Jiish Osini/mi 
 7 Cluj ‘^Zord Stourhen 
 0 FaJier Lord HunJerford 
 0 Walter dr la WyCe 
 JO Sir John Chene y 
 U WLJ,onqspee.i'‘.^ t\irl of Salisbury 
 2Z John Flythe 
 13 Pi'ih^Wood.ville 
 -/'/ Bish ^ Sfetf'ord 
 15 Su' R-Monipesson 
 JO Risk '‘Salcot or Lew on 
 17 Biske Bruiuort 
 JO miFdeTork 
 
 10 Chapel of the Ifu/iaerford Family 
 ZO Bis liF Wiekhanwton 
 Z1 Edward, Ecul Hertford 
 ZZ Sv' ITui^ Gorges 
 Z3 Bish^ JXvgef or Moiizvai 
 Z4 BishFJiulJ.ey 
 Z5 BishFBing'hani 
 Zfj BJhF Poore 
 
 Z7 Bish F Wyvill J near, the Graves of 
 ■ Bishops. Jewell S Guest 
 ZO Thomas Btnnet 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 5 
 
 a common and important character of ecclesiastical architecture, 
 the grandeur of which is no more the result of dimension, than its 
 beauty is of ornament. The architects applied both as accessories, 
 but depended on neither alone for the merit of their buildings.’^ 
 The extreme length of the Cathedral Church outside, from west 
 to east, is 480 feet. The length of the grand transept outside, 
 from south to north, is 232 feet, and the extreme length of the 
 eastern transept is 172 feet. 
 
 The foundation of the church is, by care of the architect in its 
 mixture of composition, and by time, so consolidated together, 
 that it deserves great commendation.'^ The walls and buttresses 
 are of Chilmark stone, which is very little inferior to that from 
 Portland, and was brought from a quarry about twelve miles west- 
 ward from the city ; the middle parts of the walls are filled up with 
 rubble, and such materials as were used in the foundation. The 
 cylindrical shafts of the pillars are of Purbeck marble of fine tex- 
 ture, but the groins and principal ribs of the vaultings are of 
 Chilmark stone, filled in with hewn stone and chalk mixed, over 
 • which is a coat of cement uniting the whole in one substance.'* 
 
 This church has an important advantage over many other edifices 
 of the same character ; it is not so closely surrounded by buildings, 
 which is too frequently the case, but is easy of access, and afibrds a 
 delightful view from almost every point. As to outline and dimen- 
 sions, a more splendid building can scarcely be imagined, while the 
 lofty proportions of the spire become the more striking upon a 
 near approach. 
 
 The western front is a beautifully enriched specimen of the 
 pointed architecture peculiar to this church ; the angles are termi- 
 nated by tolerably massive square towers, surmounted by spires 
 and pinnacles, and over the grand central entrance is a series of 
 canopied arches, beneath the great western window, which is in 
 three divisions. 
 
 Near the western end, and attached to the northern side of the 
 church is a bold and lofty porch, one of the most spacious and 
 beautiful of its kind in the kingdom. A series of double lancet 
 
 13 Observations on the Original Architecture of St. Mary Magdalen College. 
 Oxford, p. 59. 
 
 Price’s Survey of the Cathedral, 1753, p. 23. 
 
 15 Price’s Survey, p. 24. 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 6 
 
 windows is continued all round the aisles, and the clerestory is 
 lighted by a course of windows having three openings, each forming 
 an acutely pointed arch. The exterior of the Cathedral is enriched 
 with a number of niches, or recesses for figures, situated in tiers at 
 different heights ; many of the statues, larger than life, are still 
 remaining, and by a calculation of the number of recesses all round 
 the building, there must originally have been at least two hundred 
 placed within them. 
 
 At the intersection of the nave of the church with the grand 
 transept rises the tower, one of the principal ornaments of the 
 building, commencing from four lancet arches turned upon four 
 very beautiful piers and clustered pillars, which scarcely gives an 
 idea of adequate strength. The height, from the pavement of the 
 church to the top of the arch, is about eighty feet ; thence the 
 tower rises in three stories, the first of which is connected with the 
 roof of the church : it is very generally imagined that originally a 
 lantern or dwarf tower rose only about eight feet above the ridge 
 of the roof. It is evident from Price’s Survey, before quoted, that 
 the spire did not form any part of the original plan.** 
 
 The upper part of the tower of the church, with its buttresses 
 and the spire, said to be the first constructed with stone, are 
 supposed to have been erected in the reign of Edward III. It is 
 known that King Henry VI. in the year 1417, granted a license to 
 the chapter to acquire lands to the amount of 50/. per annum, for 
 the purpose of repairing the spire, which was found to be in a 
 dangerous state. The faces of the two upper stories of the tower 
 are enriched with buttresses, pinnacles, and tracery, the lower 
 story having a more substantial appearance. At each angle of the 
 main tower rises an octagonal turret, terminated with battlements, 
 and capped with a small crocketted spire ; immediately behind 
 these, for the purpose of connecting the square tower with the 
 octagonal form of the spire, are four tasteful architectural ornaments 
 rising in pinnacles. At the base of the spire are also four openings 
 crowned with tabernacles. 
 
 The walls of the tower of the church are about six feet thick 
 
 On the north-western side of the Cathedral formerly stood a hell tower, coeval with 
 the foundation, which was removed about the year 1790, in order to affirrd a better view 
 of the church. 
 

 
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SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 7 
 
 at their commencement ; for a short height the thickness is reduced 
 to two feet, and the upper part of the walls is five feet thick. 
 
 Four arches are turned from the angles of the tower to receive 
 four sides of the superstructure. The spire, which is octagonal, 
 rises from the centre of the tower nearly two hundred feet, in four 
 divisions, separated by ornamental bands, each of the angles having 
 ribs enriched with knobs, thickly arranged and continued round the 
 bands ; the whole height from the pavement of the church to the 
 top of the cross is about four hundred feet. 
 
 It may not escape observation that the enrichments of the spire 
 conduce in some measure to its beauty, although a contrary opinion 
 has been advocated by an eminent and distinguished critic in mat- 
 ters of taste j after admitting that Salisbury, the great archetype of 
 spires, has never been equalled, Mr. Dallaway remarks, that the 
 more beautiful specimens of a species of architecture, exclusively 
 English, are extremely simple, and owe their effect to their fine 
 proportions, unbroken by ornamental particles. Even that of 
 Salisbury, he continues, gains nothing by the sculptured fillets 
 which surround it, and those of the western front of Lichfield 
 Cathedral are frosted over with petty decorations.” 
 
 There is a flight of stone steps leading to the top of the tower, 
 and thence wooden ladders admit of an ascent to within forty-two 
 feet of the cross, from which point is an exit by a small door, and 
 iron rings are hence fixed on the outside, the only means of ascent 
 to the capstone of the spire, through which the standard of the 
 vane passes. The stone, of which the spire is constructed, is about 
 two feet thick to about the height of twenty feet, thence it is only 
 nine inches in thickness to the top ; but nearly the whole interior 
 of the spire is filled with timbers, very curiously and ingeniously 
 contrived, and strengthened in several parts by braces of iron to 
 sustain its vast altitude. 
 
 A settlement has taken place of the piers in the western sides 
 of the tower, by which the upper part has declined. It was 
 ascertained, in the year 1681, that the centre of the apex of the 
 spire was twenty-two inches and three-eighths out of the perpen- 
 dicular from the middle of the base, but no variation has been 
 taken notice of since. 
 
 '^Observations on English Architecture, p. 125. 
 
8 
 
 SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Price 1 ® mentions a custom which had prevailed from time 
 immemorial. In the Whitsun holidays a fair is kept within the 
 close of Sarum, at which time it was customary for people to 
 go upon the spire, there having been, as I am well informed, 
 sometimes eight, or ten persons there at a time ; but the late 
 bishop, dean and chapter, put a stop to these practices, by which 
 many lives were hazarded.’ 
 
 On the southern side of the church are the cloisters, muniment 
 room, and chapter-house. The cloister, one of the finest ornamental 
 enclosures in the kingdom, forms an exact square of one hundred and 
 eighty-one feet nine inches in dimension within, by eighteen feet 
 wide. The ambulatory is rendered beautiful, having large openings 
 to the air, with the dividing mullion brought down to the floor. 
 The eastern side of the cloister communicates by a vestibule and 
 double doorway, the arches of which spring from a clustered pillar 
 with carved capital, with the chapter-house, a strikingly elegant 
 building both in form and finish. It is supposed to have been erected 
 during the prelacy of Bishop Bridport, who died in 1262, the style 
 of the sculpture and the architectural details being referable to 
 that period. The room is octangular in plan, having a small clus- 
 tered pillar in the centre, apparently sustaining the ramified ribs of 
 the vaulted roof. It has eight large and lofty windows, all of which 
 were formerly filled with stained glass, and the floor was originally 
 paved with painted tiles ; much of this ornamental pavement still 
 remains. An arcade is carried round the lower part of the walls, 
 and a deep stone plinth surrounds the interior, forming a seat for 
 the canons, the part towards the east, and opposite the entrance, 
 being raised for the bishop and dignitaries. In the spandrils of 
 the arcade, which rises above the seats of the chapter, is a series of 
 historical subjects from the Old Testament, sculptured in bold 
 relief, and several of the busts which terminate the labels of the 
 arches are curious examples of art, exhibiting much character and 
 expression. In the chapter-house is a curious wooden table, 
 evidently formed and fashioned nearly six centuries ago, for the use 
 of the chapter : it is a beautiful specimen of ancient furniture. 
 The supports of this table consist of eight jambs, having detached 
 columns with capitals, bases, and bands of the fine.st detail; 
 
 18 In his Survey, p. 61. 
 
n ) I,: /\ ,1 . 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 9 
 
 there are also eight open pointed arches of graceful form-; and 
 it appears that the whole table was originally painted in diversity 
 of colour and gilt.'® 
 
 Over part of the eastern side of the cloisters is the Cathedral 
 Library. The Library, which belonged to Old Sarum, was founded 
 by Bishop Osmund, who was himself a great patron of learned 
 men. The present library was originally built by Bishop Jewell, 
 and was furnished with books by his successor. Bishop Edmund 
 Gheast, in the reign of Elizabeth. Amongst the curious volumes 
 now preserved is a beautiful copy of the celebrated Salisbury 
 Missal, which was printed in 1537, and contains manuscript 
 notes.®® 
 
 There are numerous memorials in the cloister, and a tablet to 
 Francis Price, surveyor and clerk of the works of this Cathedral, 
 who died in 1753. He was author of a series of observations upon 
 this church, and directed many repairs with great judgment. The 
 Rev. John Ekins, D.D., Dean of Salisbury, who died in 1808, is 
 also buried in the cloister. 
 
 Within the close, a space which was formerly surrounded by a 
 wall, is the residence of the bishop, dean, canons, and the several 
 
 >®Tlie public taste having been directed to specimens of ancient furniture, by several 
 modern publications, it may not be irredevent to mention that there was also in the 
 chapter-house a handsome old chair, made like a stall, with a moveable seat and carved 
 knobs. This chair was supposed to have been constructed about the time of Henry 
 Vlth’s reign, consequently was not so old as the table by two centuries. A particular 
 description of both, by an artist of celebrity, is given in the Gentleman’s Magazine for 
 April, 1833. 
 
 2“ It is well known that the Liturgies compiled for the use of the churches of Salis- 
 bury, York, Bangor, Lincoln, and Hereford, were considered as the standard texts for 
 the performance of divine service in the other Cathedrals. The ordinale, or complete 
 service of the church of Salisbury, was instituted by Bishop Osmund, in the year of our 
 Lord 1077. The Use of Sarum not only regulated the form and order of celebrating the 
 mass, but prescribed the rule and office for all sacerdotal functions. It was also named 
 the Consuetudinary, and in the fourteenth century was used almost all over England, 
 Wales, and Ireland. The whole province of Canterbury adopted that particular form 
 of prayer, and the Bishop of Salisbury was consequently precentor of the choir when- 
 ever the Archbishop of Canterbury performed divine service. The Cathedral Church of 
 Salisbury supplies both curious and copious details in the history of its ancient service : 
 no other Cathedral has preserved such a variety of books for its Use as Sarum. At the 
 end of one of these service books of this church, printed by Caxton, it is stated, that 
 “ as no rule is set down which had not been thoroughly debated and approved bv the 
 canons of Sarum and other skilful men, and confirmed by their hands andse?J'>, whoever 
 shall observe those rules shall scarcely err in the service of God." 
 
 VOL. I. C 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 10 
 
 officers of the Cathedral. The deanery house is opposite the 
 ■western front of the church, and at a little distance south-eastward 
 from the Cathedral is the bishop’s palace, a part of which was 
 erected by Bishop Bichard Beauchamp, about the year 1460. The 
 palace has, since that period, undergone great change, but without 
 entire demolition, and is an irregular building in different styles of 
 architecture, having been enlarged or altered by almost every 
 successive bishop of Salisbury. In the great hall of this palace 
 Robert Sidney, Viscount Lisle, lord chamberlain to Anne, queen of 
 James I., was created Earl of Leicester, on Sunday, August 2, 1618. 
 In the great drawing-room of the palace is preserved an interesting 
 series of episcopal portraits, from that of Bishop Brian Duppa, who 
 was promoted to this see in 1641, to that of the Bight Bev. Thomas 
 Burgess, D.D., Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of the Order of 
 the Garter.^^ 
 
 The gardens of the bishop’s palace are on a large scale, compris- 
 ing an area of several acres in extent, partly consisting of a lawn, 
 with a canal in the centre, surrounded by a walk, and interspersed 
 with fine large old trees. 
 
 The following stanza, by Dr. Heylin, conveys the popular idea 
 of the vast extent of the Cathedral: — ■ 
 
 As many days as in one year there be, 
 
 So many windows in this church we see; 
 
 As many marble pillars here appear 
 
 As there are hours throughout the fleeting year : 
 
 As many gates as moons one year does view, 
 
 Strange tale to tell, yet not more strange than true. 
 
 The uniformity of style in the architecture of this sublime and 
 majestic edifice, it is admitted, adds greatly to the fine effect of the 
 exterior appearance, yet it has been remarked, that the interior of 
 this church is neither so grand, picturesque, or diversified, as that 
 of many other Cathedrals. Time, by its slow and irresistible pro- 
 gress, has imparted to the edifice that sombre hue of antiquity 
 
 King Edward IV. annexed the chancellorship of the Order of the Garter to the 
 bishops of this see, but in the new statutes of the Order, made by King Henry Vlilth, 
 the office was left solely at the king’s disposal, and might be given to a layman. King 
 Charles II., after the death of Sir Henry de Vic, restored it to this see, at the solicita- 
 tion of Bishop Seth Ward, who, in 1671, was made chancellor of the Order of the 
 Garter, being the first protestant bishop that held the office. 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 11 
 
 which makes the old age of buildings the period of their greatest 
 beauty. Revolutions, political and religious, have stripped tlie 
 church of its sculpture and paintings, but fashion has, within these 
 walls, done more mischief than revolutions, and, in the assumed 
 names of taste and improvement, has destroyed part of the ori- 
 ginal plan, and by a capricious change of the sites of its ancient 
 monuments, has despoiled the Cathedral of some of its greatest 
 ornaments. One of the principal alterations, made under the 
 direction of Bishop Barrington, in 1789, by Mr. James Wyatt, 
 was the opening of the Lady Chapel to the choir by the removal 
 of the ancient altar and its screen, taking it for granted that the 
 professors of architecture in the reign of Henry III. must have 
 had false ideas of proportion, the Lady Chapel being then uni- 
 versally kept distinct from the choir. This supposed improve- 
 ment could not, however, be completed without also removing two 
 chapels, one on the northern side erected by Bishop Beauchamp, 
 and one on the southern side by Lady Hungerford, both built in 
 the fifteenth century : it was at the same time necessary to alter the 
 level of the pavement, when several stone coffins, with perfect 
 skeletons, were disinterred, supposed to belong to the early bene- 
 factors of the church. Many of the ancient monuments were re- 
 moved, and have been ranged between the clustered pillars in the 
 nave ; two porches were taken down, and the openings closed up. 
 There is, at this time, it is believed, but one opinion respecting 
 the desecration which was then called improvement ; another altar 
 has been required to be placed on the site of the ancient one, 
 at which the communion service is now performed; the altar 
 at the extremity of the Lady Chapel being in consequence dis- 
 used. One of the most injudicious alterations has been evinced 
 by its inutility, and a regard for propriety has dictated a restora- 
 tion of the choir to something like its former state.^* 
 
 *2 A design for an altar screen, enriched with simple but appropriate ornaments, in 
 the general style of the architecture of the Cathedral, has been made by Mr. Buckler, 
 and is appended to the Rev. Stephen Hyde Cassan’s Lives of the Bishops of Salisbury, 
 1824. The erection of a screen, formed with a view of concealing as little of the archi- 
 tecture of the eastern end of the church as possible, according to Mr. Buckler’s plan, is 
 very likely to be soon carried into effect ; thus a partial view will be obtained of the 
 Lady Chapel, and by separating it from the rest of the church it will be brought to a 
 conformity with the ancient Cathedral arrangements. 
 
1^ SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The nave of the church, 229 feet in length, is light and lofty,^® 
 a view from the western end affords the finest display of its ele- 
 gant proportion and admirable uniformity of design. The nave 
 consists of ten arches on each side, springing from clustered pil- 
 lars ; over the arcade is a triforium, or gallery of communication, 
 which is surmounted by the windows of the clerestory, that give 
 light to the body of the church. Between the pillars of the nave 
 are ranged, on either side, the monuments which have all been 
 removed from other parts of the church. Against the western 
 wall are two monuments, one to Thomas Lord Wyndham, of Fin- 
 glas, who died in 1745, by Bysbrack, and the other to Daubigny 
 Turberville, M.D., who died in 1696. 
 
 Beneath the first arch of the nave on the northern side, is a 
 slab, without an inscription, said to be one of those tombs which 
 Avere brought from the church of Old Sarum. Under the third 
 arch, on the same side, are two monuments ; the one, a basso 
 relievo, represents a small figure in pontificals, and is said to be a 
 tomb of one of the boy bishops or chorister bishops, formerly 
 elected annually on St. Nicholas Day, in this church.'^* The other 
 monument is said to be that of William, eldest son of the Earl of 
 Salisbury, who was slain in Egypt, in the year 1250. An altar- 
 tomb, under the fourth arch from the west, is without any inscrip- 
 tion, and beneath the sixth arch is another altar-tomb of unknown 
 appropriation. Beneath the seventh arch is a tomb of John de 
 Montacute, son of William Earl of Salisbury, who died in 1388. 
 Under the eighth arch is an altar-tomb which was removed from 
 the Lady Chapel ; it is ascribed to St. Osmund, bishop of this 
 diocese, ivho died in the year 1099. The monuments under the 
 two last arches of the nave are those of Walter Lord Hungerford 
 and Sir John Cheney. 
 
 Under the westernmost arch, on the southern side of the nave 
 is a monumental slab, brought from Old Sarum ; beneath the third 
 arch is a monument attributed to Bishop Joceline, who died in 1184, 
 and whose remains were brought from Old Sarum in the year 1226. 
 Under the same arch is the tomb of Bishop Boger, who died 
 
 ** It is 81 feet in height, but not so high as that of Westminster Abbey Church by 
 20 feet. 
 
 A particular account of the Episcopus Pueroi um, is given in Ilone’s Every Day 
 Book, vol. i. 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL, 
 
 13 
 
 in 1139.*® The space within the next arch contains an altar-tomb 
 without an inscription, and whom it was raised to commemorate is 
 not known. Beneath the sixth arch is a tomb appropriated 
 to Bishop Richard Beauchamp, son of Walter Beauchamp, of 
 Powick, steward of the household to King Henry V., and brother of 
 William Lord St. Amand; he was Dean of Windsor, and was 
 master of the works at St. George’s Chapel, the design of which 
 edifice is attributed to him. He was constituted Chancellor of the 
 Order of the Garter by King Edward IV., and died in 1481. His 
 remains were removed from his chantry chapel at the eastern end 
 of the church.^® Under the seventh arch of the nave is an altar- 
 tomb in memory of Robert Lord Hungerford, who died in 1459 : 
 beneath the next arch is the tomb of Charles Lord Stourton, who 
 was executed in the market-place of Salisbury, in the year 1556, 
 for murder. Under the ninth arch is the monument of Bishop 
 Walter de la Wyle, who died in 1270 ; and the last in the series, 
 upon the southern side of the nave, is the very interesting and 
 curious tomb of William Longespee, Earl of Salisbury, the natural 
 son of King Henry II. and Fair Rosamond ; he died in 1226. Nicho- 
 las Longespee, one of his sons, was Bishop of Salisbury, and died 
 at an advanced age, in 1297 ; he also was buried in this Cathedral. 
 
 Against the southern wall of the church is a monument and 
 bust, in memory of Lord Chief J ustice Hyde, who died in 1666 ; 
 near which is a slab in memory of Bishop Alexander Hyde, who 
 died in 1667. In this aisle was also interred Dr. Stebbing, Arch- 
 deacon of Wiltshire and Chancellor of this Diocese, who died in 
 1763. 
 
 The choir screen at the eastern end of the nave, was erected 
 from designs by James Wyatt; but it is said to be composed of 
 
 It is related of this bishop that his first promotion in the church arose from the 
 celerity with which he celebrated mass. “ At a small church in Normandy, before 
 Prince Henry, afterwards King Henry I., Roger, who was only a curate, ran over the 
 prayers so expeditiously, that mass was ended before some thought it well begun ; 
 every one applauded him, and declared they never saw so dexterous a priest. He was 
 desired by the prince to follow the camp, and was soon afterwards entrusted with the 
 management of his household .” — Antiquitates Sarisburiensis, p. 128. 
 
 In the prosecution of the barbarisms, dictated by had taste in the year 1789, 
 within the walls of this venerable structure, it appears that the actual tomb of Bishop 
 Beauchamp was wantonly broken, and that the present monument was then brought 
 from the transept. 
 
14 SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 various parts of the Hungerford and Beauchamp Chapels, which 
 were pulled down in 1789. In a gallery over this screen is an 
 organ presented by his Majesty George III., built by Green.*' 
 The stalls and bishop’s throne are of modern design, and there 
 are but few ancient monuments in the choir. On the northern 
 side is a tomb bearing the figure of a skeleton, without inscrip- 
 tion ; farther eastward is a monument ascribed to Bishop Robert 
 Bingham, one of those eminent men who assisted in the erection 
 of this church : he died in 1246, before it was entirely completed. 
 The last object of interest on the northern side of the choir 
 is the sepulchral chantry, erected by Bishop Edmund Audley; 
 he died at Bamsbury, in 1524, and was buried in this chapel : 
 this bishop was a patron of architecture, and besides rebuilding the 
 choir of St. Mary’s Church in Oxford, he also erected a chapel 
 in the Cathedral of Hereford, from which see he was translated to 
 Salisbury in the year 1502. Bishop Audley’s Chapel is one of the 
 few monuments in this church which has been suffered to remain 
 in good preservation ; it is a fine specimen of the taste which the 
 founder possessed and encouraged, consisting of an open screen on 
 its northern and southern sides, the walls of the chapel abutting 
 against the pillars of the choir on the east and west. On the 
 southern side of the choir the monuments of peculiar interest are 
 ranged in the following order, and in corresponding situations to 
 those on the opposite side. An altar-tomb, in memory of Bishop 
 John Capon, formerly Abbot of Hyde and Bishop of Bangor, 
 whence he was translated to Salisbury : he died in 1557. A mo- 
 nument of Bishop William de York, who died in 1256 ; and the 
 remains of the Hungerford Chapel, erected in 1470. by Margaret, 
 relict of Robert Lord Hungerford. 
 
 The eastern end of the choir is terminated by three fine arches 
 springing from clustered pillars ; the openings between the pillars 
 were formerly closed by the altar-screen, which separated the Lady 
 Chapel from the choir ; over the arches is the triforium. and above 
 it is a clerestory window of painted glass, of very orflinary merit. 
 
 2? 'While the alterations were in progress the King visited Salisbury, and hearing 
 that the means depended on the contributions of the gentlemen of "Wiltshire and Berk- 
 shire, is reported to have said to Bishop Barrington, “ I desire that you will accept a 
 new organ for your Cathedral, being my contribution as a Berkshire aentleman.” 
 

•/ 
 
 
SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 15 
 
 The subject designed by J. H. Mortimer, represents the elevation 
 of the brazen serpent in the wilderness, and was executed by 
 Pearson. 
 
 The Lady Chapel, now forming the eastern end of the choir, is 
 very elegant in its architectural design ; the vaulted ceiling springs 
 partly from slender clustered pillars, and partly from single shafts 
 of Purbeck marble, nearly thirty feet in height and only nine inches 
 in diameter, a mode of construction which gives an extraordinary 
 appearance of lightness to the building. At the eastern end is a 
 painted window in three compartments, representing the Resurrec- 
 tion, designed by Sir Joshua Reynolds, and executed by Eginton : 
 the want of effect in all modern painted windows arises from a pre- 
 tended improvement of concealing as much as possible the joinings 
 of the several pieces, and of using large, instead of small, squares 
 of glass ; neither are the colours sufficiently resplendent. It cannot 
 be said of this window. 
 
 Here rubies are and emeralds green. 
 
 Here pearl and topaz bright. 
 
 In the aisles of the choir and Lady Chapel, and in the eastern 
 transept, are the following monuments of eminent persons which 
 occur in succession. A large slab commemorates Bishop Robert 
 Wyvil ; he died in 1375, and was buried near the bishop’s throne. 
 His monument is inlaid with intagliated brass, representing the 
 castle of Sherbourne, in Dorsetshire, which formerly belonged to 
 the bishops of Salisbury ; the bishop himself is seen on the walls 
 of the castle, while his champion in complete armour guards the 
 entrance. Near this slab are other gravestones in memory of 
 Bishop John Jewell, author of “An Apology for the Church of 
 England,” who died in 1571 ; and of his successor. Bishop Edmund 
 Gheast, almoner to Queen Elizabeth, who died in 1577. 
 
 Besides an altar-tomb ascribed to Bishop Richard Poore, the 
 founder of the Cathedral Church, there is also a monument com- 
 memorative of the Poore family, designed by the Rev. H. Owen. 
 
 A slab bearing a cross fleury, sculptured in relief, is supposed 
 to cover the remains of Bishop Roger de Mortival, who died in the 
 year 1329. The monument of Sir Thomas Gorges, of Longford 
 castle, who died in 1610, is the last of particular interest on the 
 northern side of the church. 
 
16 SALISBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 On the opposite side are the following memorials of eminent 
 persons, beginning at the eastern end of the south aisle, where is a 
 tomb of Edward Earl of Hertford, who died in 1621, set. 83. On 
 this monument is sculptured his effigies and that of his countess, 
 who was the sister of Lady Jane Grey, and died in ISGS.*^® Near 
 it is an altar-tomb ascribed to Bishop Wickharapton, who died in 
 1284, which is more probably that of William Wilton, chancellor 
 of the diocese in 1506. A very singular and tasteful architectural 
 monument in memory of Bishop Giles Bridport, who died in 1263^ 
 fills a space between two clustered pillars : and the last monument 
 of interest in the southern aisle of the choir is that of Sir Richard 
 Mompesson, of Bathampton, who died in 1701. 
 
 In the northern transept of the Cathedral is a monument beneath 
 a canopy, assigned to Bishop John Blith, who died in 1499. Here 
 are also several monuments for branches of the Harris family, ances- 
 tors and relatives of the Earl of Malmsbury ; that of James Harris, 
 the author of “ Hermes,” who died in 1780, was sculptured by J. 
 Bacon, R.A. ; a cenotaph to William Benson Earle, who died in 
 1796; and against the north wall is a monument to Walter Long, 
 senior judge of the sheriff’s court, London, who died in 1807, by J. 
 Flaxman, R.A. In this transept is a monument appropriated to 
 Bishop Lionel Woodville, who died in 1484. In the northern aisle 
 of the choir is a memorial of the Rev. John Bampton, canon resi- 
 dentiary of this church, and founder of the Bampton Lectures. Near 
 it is a monument of James Earl of Castlehaven, who died in 1769. 
 In the southern transept is a tomb enriched with sculpture, attributed 
 to Bishop Richard Metford, who died at Pottern in 1407 ; he left 
 an annual sum for the reparation of the spire of this Cathedral. 
 Against the wall is a tablet in memory of Robert Hay, brother 
 of James Earl of Carlisle, who died in 1625 ; near it are monu- 
 mental slabs to Bishop Thomas, who died in 1766, and Bishop 
 Hume, who died in 1782. In the small transept is a memorial of 
 John Clarke, D.D., dean of this church, who died in 1757 ; another 
 to Bishop Seth Ward. Edward Youth, D.D., Dean of Salisbury, 
 and Bishop Davenant, who died in 1641, are also interred here. 
 
 ** John Duke of Somerset, who died in 1675, and Elizabeth Duchess of Somerset, 
 who died in 1722, are also interred here. 
 

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CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL, 
 
 Canterbury, the see of an archbishop, primate of all England 
 and metropolitan, was the first established seat of episcopal power 
 in Britain. Augustine, styled the apostle of the English, and the 
 first Archbishop of Canterbury, was originally a monk in the con- 
 vent of St. Andrew, at Kome, where he was educated under Pope 
 Gregory, who undertook the conversion of the inhabitants of 
 Britain. Soon after his consecration, that pope sent, A.D. 597, 
 about forty monks as missionaries to this island, with Augustine at 
 their head. 
 
 Christianity was not, even at this period, unknown in Britain, 
 notwithstanding it had been much persecuted by the Saxons, and 
 there were other circumstances highly in favour of the success of 
 the mission. Ethelbert, the fifth king of Kent,* who embraced 
 Christianity, and was baptized by Augustine, was united to 
 Bertha, daughter of Cherebert, King of France, a Christian prin- 
 cess, who had stipulated for the free exercise of her religion in her 
 marriage contract. The queen, sincere in her principles, was 
 earnest in persuading Ethelbert to give Augustine and his followers 
 a hospitable reception. He afterwards granted the city of Canter- 
 bury with its dependencies to Augustine, who had been invested 
 with archiepiscopal dignity by Pope Gregory : the church of Can- 
 terbury was then made Cathedral, and dedicated to the name of 
 Christ.® 
 
 Pope Gregory, surnamed the Great, at St. Augustine’s request, 
 afterwards sent over more missionaries, and directed him to 
 constitute a bishop of York, who might have other subordinate 
 
 The kingJotn of Kent, founded by Hengist, A.D. 455, contained the whole 
 county, 
 
 * The religious, in this kingdom, as well bishops as others, held their possessions 
 by Frank almoigne, or free alms, to them and their successors for ever. By this 
 tenure by divine service almost all the ancient monasteries held their lands ; and 
 by the same, the deans and chapters, and other ecclesiastical foundations hold their 
 estates at this day ; Frank almoigne being excepted in the statute of King Charles II. 
 for abolishing tenures. 
 
 VOL. 1. 
 
 D 
 
18 CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 bishops, but in such a manner that Augustine of Canterbury should 
 be metropolitan of all England. Augustine died in the year 604, 
 at Canterbury, and was buried in the churchyard of a monastery 
 called after his name, the Cathedral not being then finished ; but 
 after the consecration of that church his body was taken up and 
 deposited within the northern porch, where it lay until the year 1091, 
 when it was removed and placed in the church. Honorius, the fifth 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, is said to have divided his province into 
 parishes in the year 636 ; the earliest ecclesiastical division being 
 that of a diocese, or circuit, of a bishop’s jurisdiction. 
 
 Trithona, his successor, was the first English archbishop ap- 
 pointed to the see ; his learning and piety are much extolled, and 
 he received the honorary surname of Deus Dedit. 
 
 The Cathedral Church, which had sufiered from the effects 
 of a Danish invasion, and become unfit for the performance of 
 divine service, was repaired by Archbishop Odo in the year 938 ; 
 but in 1011 a numerous fleet anchored in Sandwich harbour, and 
 Canterbury was destroyed by the rapacious Danes. The church 
 was burned with the exception of the outer walls, and remained in 
 a ruinous and neglected state till order was restored to the kingdom 
 by Canute’s accession to the throne in 1017, when the Cathedral 
 was once more repaired. 
 
 Archbishop Livingus and his successor Ethelnoth received the 
 most liberal encouragement under Canute, and the records of the 
 times mention many valuable presents bestowed by the king upon 
 the church ; amongst others his golden crown, which was pre- 
 served at Canterbury until the Reformation. The Cathedral 
 Church suffered by fire about the year 1067 ; and when Lanfranc, 
 Abbot of Caen, was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury and 
 primate of England by King William the Conqueror, he found the 
 edifice in a ruinous state. Lanfranc, who was an architect as well 
 as a prelate, pulled down the greater part of the building, and 
 began its re-erection with arches of a bolder sweep, and columns of 
 more elegant proportions. 
 
 This work was carried on under the direction of Prior Conrad, 
 and during the prelacy of Anselm, successor to Archbishop Lan- 
 franc. The taste and ability of the architects appear to have 
 excited the wonder of their cor nporaries. Nothing similar,” 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 19 
 
 according to William of Malmsbury, “ was to be found in England, 
 either for the brilliancy of the painted windows, the splendour of 
 the marble pavement, or the pictured roof which attracted the eyes 
 of beholders.” The Cathedral was dedicated to Jesus Christ by 
 Archbishop Radulfus, A.D. 1114, and is ably described by Gervase, 
 a monk of Christ’s-church.® In describing the choir, which was 
 more immediately the work of Prior Conrad, Gervase gives the 
 details of magnificence, which was reported to King Henry as an 
 example of profusion, and a waste of his liberal donations. The 
 king’s reply is tinctured with the unbounded veneration for the 
 church which characterized that age. “ If those treasures have 
 contributed to the increase and glory of the house of God, blessed 
 be the Lord that he has inspired me with the will to grant them, 
 and that he has bestowed such grace upon my reign, that I am 
 permitted to behold the increasing prosperity of my holy mother the 
 church.” 
 
 After the murder of Archbishop Becket, 28th Dec., 1170, the 
 Cathedral Church was desecrated for one year, during which time 
 divine service was not performed : the bells were fastened, the 
 pavement turned up, the hangings and pictures removed, and dirt 
 suffered to accumulate within the walls. The re-consecration of the 
 church, after so memorable an event, led the way to an influx of 
 benefactions and honours, strongly characteristic of the superstition 
 of the age, and of the influence of the priests. The recorded lists 
 of treasures which flowed in upon the death of the martyr in the 
 cause of church dominion are admirable testimonies of its fame. 
 
 On the 5th September, 1174, the choir and other parts of the 
 church were consumed by fire. The whole east end of the 
 Cathedral was rebuilt between the years 1175 and 1180, under 
 the direction of William of Sens, and of another architect of the 
 name of William.* 
 
 After the death of Archbishop Hubert Walter, the animosity 
 between the king and the convent of Christ’s-church greatly 
 increased. The Pope taking advantage of this division, gave 
 directions to the monks to elect Cardinal Stephen Lang ton as 
 
 ® He wrote a history of the Archbishops of Canterbury from St. Augustine to Arch- 
 bishop Hubert Walter, who died in 1205. See Hist. Anglican Script. 10. 
 
 * This architect was an Englishman, the first of whom anything is known. 
 
20 
 
 CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 archbishop, without the customary royal license. The enraged 
 monarch expelled the monks, who took refuge in Flemish convents, 
 while the monks of St. Augustine’s obtained possession of the con- 
 vent and church. This finally led to passing a sentence of interdict 
 upon the country, excommunication and despotism followed, and 
 the king having neither fortitude to withstand nor ability to avert 
 the storm, was compelled to an abject and pusillanimous submission 
 to the court of Eome. These dissentions operated to prevent any 
 improvement which might have been carried on in the structure of 
 the metropolitan Cathedral. The erection of the Trinity Chapel 
 and circular tower adjoining, for the reception of Archbishop 
 Becket’s reliques, engrossed the care and attention of the guardians 
 of the church at this very period. 
 
 A costly shrine having been prepared for the canonized mar- 
 tyr, Saint Thomas of Canterbury, in the centre of the Trinity 
 Chapel, the translation of his remains from his tomb in the 
 crypt took place on the 7th July, 1220 . This ceremony was 
 graced by the presence of King Henry III., Pandulf, the 
 pope’s legate. Archbishop Cardinal Langton, the Archbishop of 
 Rheims, and other prelates. Tlie expense attending this ceremony 
 was immense, the archbishop having provided refreshments, with 
 provender for horses, along the road from London, for all who 
 chose to attend. Conduits were dispersed about the city of 
 Canterbury, which ran with wine, and nothing was wanting to 
 give full effect to this triumph of priestly power. The upper 
 part of Becket’s skull, which had been severed by his murderers, 
 was preserved by itself on an altar highly decorated, at the 
 eastern extremity of the church, in the tower now called Beeket’s 
 Crown. The festival of the Translation of St. Thomas became an 
 anniversary of the highest splendour, attended by a grand display 
 of the riches and greatness of the convent.® 
 
 A striking example of improvement in architecture is afforded 
 by the east end of the Cathedral Church as it was rebuilt about 
 the year 1180. “ It is,” says Dr. Milner, “ an incomparable 
 
 advantage in forming a right idea of the rise of pointed architecture 
 in England, that we are possessed of an accurate comparison made 
 
 * It is to this festival we are indebted for one of the most curious as well as most 
 ancient poems in the English language, “ The Canterbury Tales,” of Chaucer. 
 

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CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 21 
 
 by Gervase, an intelligent eye-witness, between tbe cboir built by 
 Archbishop Lanfranc, and the same parts rebuilt at the distance 
 of about ninety years afterwards. The most remarkable points 
 of difference which he mentions are, that the pillars of the new 
 choir were of the same form and thickness with those of the old 
 choir ; but that they were twelve feet longer ; that the former 
 capitals were plain, while the latter were delicately carved ; that 
 there were no marble columns in Lanfranc’s work, but an incre- 
 dible number in that which succeeded it ; that the stones which 
 formed the ancient arches were cut with an axe, but those of the 
 new arches with a chisel 5 that the vaulting of the aisles of the choir 
 was formerly plain, but now pointed, with key-stones or bosses ; 
 that the old choir was covered with a flat ceiling, ornamentally 
 painted,® while the new one was elegantly arched, with hard stone 
 for the ribs, and light toph stone for the interstices ; Anally, that 
 there was only one triforium, or gallery round the ancient choir, 
 while there were two round the modern one. The present state of 
 the east end of this Cathedral corresponds with the account of 
 Gervase. We still see large well-proportioned columns crowned 
 with elegant capitals, nearly of the Corinthian order. Upon the 
 abacus of these capitals rest the bases of slender marble columns, 
 which mix their heads with other marble columns supporting the 
 arches of the principal triforium. From their united capitals 
 branch out triple clusters, which at a proper height form into ribs 
 to sustain the groining. The arches on both the upper stories and 
 in the groining are highly pointed, as are those also on the basement 
 story, which latter sweep round the eastern extremity to form the 
 apsis. In short, twenty years before the close of the twelfth century 
 there was not a member of Anglo-Saxon architecture to be seen in 
 the whole chancel and choir of this church, excepting the main 
 arches of the crypt, which were probably so constructed from an 
 idea of their being firmer than pointed ones.” ’’ 
 
 The Cathedral, situated near the north-eastern extremity of the 
 ■city, was in early times surrounded by an embattled wall, said to 
 have been raised by Archbishop Lanfranc, and which enclosed the 
 
 ® As is now the case at St. Alban s. 
 
 ’’ Milners’s Treatise on the Ecclesiastical Architecture of England during the Middle 
 Ages, p. 95. 
 
23 CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 whole precints of the church ; amongst the many venerable and 
 beautiful remains of architecture which this city contains, the 
 precincts are far from being the least interesting. This boundary 
 included three courts ; the court of the church, the court of the 
 convent, and the court of the archbishop. Part of the walls, which 
 extended about three-quarters of a mile, yet remain, as also two 
 of the gate-houses ; Christ’s-church gate, rebuilt in 1517, and the 
 gatehouse of the priory, called Porta Curia, which is of Anglo- 
 Norman architecture. 
 
 During the prelacy of Archbishop Peckham, many additions 
 were made to the Cathedral under the direction of Prior Eastry ; 
 the choir screen is said to have been erected by him : its sculpture 
 is particularly fine. He is also reported to have repaired the choir, 
 and to have enriched it with carvings. He was prior of Christ’s- 
 church from the year 1285 to 1331. The revenues of the convent 
 and church of a permanent nature, arising from the rich donations 
 of land and other property it had received, were then very con- 
 siderable ; although from that period the donations to the church 
 began visibly to decrease, and even Becket’s shrine had almost 
 gathered in its harvest. Many of the offices adjacent to the 
 Cathedral were either constructed or enlarged during the time of 
 the prelates, from Archbishop Reynolds, lord chancellor and lord 
 treasurer, in 1313, to Archbishop Sudbury, who was advanced 
 to the see in 1375. 
 
 In 1376 a great alteration was commenced by rebuilding the 
 western transept; and under the direction of Archbishop Sudbury 
 the nave of the church was pulled down in order to be rebuilt 
 in the pointed style of architecture which then prevailed. The 
 archbishop fell in an insurrection which happened in the early part 
 of the reign of Richard II., and the work devolved upon his suc- 
 cessor, Archbishop Courtenay, and was continued by Archbishops 
 Arundel and Chicheley, under the superintendence of Prior Chil- 
 lenden, who presided over the convent, and directed the works, for 
 twenty years, and died in 1411. 
 
 Prior Molash, about the year 1430, furnished a large bell 
 named Dunstan, to be hung in the tower recently erected at the 
 south-western angle of the church, whence it obtained the name of 
 Dunstan ’s Tower. Archbishop Arundel had previously raised a 
 
CANTERBUKY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 23 
 
 spire on the north-western tower, and placed five bells within its 
 walls. The tower afterwards bore the name of Arundel’s Steeple.* 
 In the time of Prior Goldstone, who attained his elevation in 
 1449, the chapel of the Virgin Mary, now called the Dean’s Chapel, 
 was erected. He also completed the south-western tower of the 
 church, which had been commenced by Archbishop Chicheley. 
 Prior Selling, created in 1472, contributed greatly towards the 
 embellishment of the building : he glazed the southern walk of the 
 cloisters, and caused it to be painted with carols, or scripture 
 texts.® The rebuilding of the magnificent central tower, called the 
 Angel Steeple,^'’ and afterwards Bell Harry tower, was undertaken 
 by Prior Selling, in order that it might harmonize with the pro- 
 portions of the recent erections. The tower was completed by his 
 successor, the second prior Goldstone ; and Cardinal Archbishop 
 Morton, who had studied architecture as a liberal accomplishment, 
 contributed largely to the work. Thomas Goldstone, who was 
 prior of Christ’s-church from 1494 till 1517, enriched the chapel of 
 the Virgin Mary in the crypt, and furnished the design for the 
 beautiful gate at the principal entrance to the close, which he nearly 
 finished. He also gave costly hangings to adorn the choir.” 
 
 The choir and all the eastern end of the church appears at this 
 time to have been hung with tapestry, superbly embroidered, par- 
 ticularly on high festivals. Describing St. Thomas’s shrine, 
 Erasmus says, “ a coffin of wood which covered a coffin of gold 
 was drawn up by ropes, and then an invaluable treasure was 
 discovered : gold was the meanest thing to be seen there ; all 
 shone and glittered with the rarest and most precious jewels of 
 an extraordinary size, some were larger than the egg of a goose ; 
 when this sight was shown, the prior with a wand touched every 
 
 * In the prints by Hollar and others, which illustrate the early histories of this 
 Cathedral, the ancient campanile, or bell tower, at the north-western angle, is repre- 
 sented as crowned with a lofty spire. It was, however, taken down about the year 1704 
 and the whole town has lately been rebuilt. 
 
 * The cloisters of St. Alban’s were about the same time also glazed, the pictures on 
 the glass representing a series of scriptural subjects, with verses attached. 
 
 *" “ This tower,” says Gervase, who described the Cathedral as built by Lanfrane, 
 “ is placed in the middle of the church, on the top pinnacle of which stands a gilded 
 cherubim hence the appellation of the Angel Steeple. 
 
 *' Part of which now decorate the Cathedral Church of Aix, in Provence, on high 
 festivals. 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 24 
 
 jewel, telling the name, the value, and the donor of it.” The 
 stately pomp with which the feasts and solemnities of the archie- 
 piscopal office were conducted was never more strikingly exem- 
 plified than at the enthronization feast of William Warham, in 
 March, 1503, who was installed with very great solemnity, the 
 Duke of Buckingham officiating as steward on the occasion. 
 Archbishop Warham was Lord Chancellor for the first seven years 
 of the reign of Henry VII. ; but was made to feel the encroach- 
 ments of Wolsey, then Archbishop of York, on the dignity 
 of his see. One memorable difference between these arch- 
 prelates arose from W olsey’s having a cross carried before him in 
 the presence of Warham, and even in the province of Canterbury, 
 contrary to ancient custom, which was that the cross of the see of 
 York should not be advanced in the same place with the cross of 
 Canterbury, in acknowledgment of the superiority of the metro- 
 politan see. 
 
 In the year 1536 King Henry VIII. prohibited all high festivals 
 of the Church between the 1st of J uly and the 29th of September, 
 under a plea that the people were induced to neglect the harvest in 
 order to attend them. This prohibition necessarily included the 
 festival of the translation of St. Thomas, the period of the grand 
 display of this convent’s riches, and its anniversary of the highest 
 solemnity. The patron saint was also ordered to be no longer 
 commemorated in any manner, and the 7th of July to be considered 
 in the church service as only an ordinary day ; Archbishop Cranmer 
 giving his support to the royal authority by supping publicly on flesh 
 on the eve of the festival of Becket’s translation, which was formerly 
 observed as a solemn fast. In the following year the king issued 
 an injunction, setting forth that Archbishop Becket, having been a 
 traitor to his prince, was not to be esteemed or called a saint ; 
 that his images and pictures should be cast out of all churches 
 throughout the realm ; that his name should be razed out of all 
 books, &c., on pain of imprisonment at his grace’s pleasure. The 
 destruction of his magnificent shrine immediately followed, and its 
 treasures were appropriated to the king’s use. The dissolution of 
 the monastery of Christ’s-church was finally effected on the 30th 
 of March 1539 ; but most of its members were intended to be 
 provided for in the new establishment of a collegiate church. 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 25 
 
 consisting of a dean and twelve canons, with other subordinate 
 oiEcers, having the same privileges as the convent. To this body 
 the Cathedral was granted, together with ail its buildings and 
 gardens ; the King reserving to himself the cellarer’s hall and 
 lodgings, westward of the cloister. 
 
 Queen Mary, zealous for the honour of the church whose cause 
 she espoused, presented an altar screen to the chapter, which was 
 erected in front of the Trinity Chapel, enclosing the choir. In the 
 time of Queen Elizabeth persecution compelled many Flemish 
 protestants to seek refuge in England, numbers of whom settled 
 in the city of Canterbury. These were accommodated Aviih the 
 undercroft, or crypt, of the Cathedral, for the performance of 
 divine service in their own language, according to their own 
 forms. 
 
 Honoured and enriched by the gifts of pious benefactors, this 
 venerable structure was at length doomed, in its turn, to suffer 
 from the assaults of an infuriated populace, in those times when 
 
 Dark fanaticism rent 
 Altar, screen, and ornament. 
 
 In the year 1643, in consequence of an order of parliament, 
 Richard Culmer, M.A., a minister of God’s word, but commonly 
 called Blue Dick, headed a band of enthusiasts, who undertook to 
 purify the Cathedral Church. They went to work on the great 
 painted window of the northern transept, which had been presented 
 to the church by King Edward IV. In this window, it is stated, 
 there were pictures of God the Father, Christ, and his twelve 
 Apostles, besides large pictures of the blessed Virgin Mary in seven 
 glorious appearances, figures of St. George, the patron of England, 
 and other saints. Here also was represented, in full proportion. 
 Archbishop Becket in his pontificals. The demolition of this 
 figure of the cathedral saint and martyr was termed “ rattling down 
 proud Becket’s glassy bones.” But the destroyers, zealous in de- 
 facing whatever they found relating to St. Thomas of Canterbury 
 and the Virgin Mary, spared the beautiful memorials of King 
 Edward IV. and his family, which yet remain in the same window. 
 The effect of this very fine specimen of art, even under its present 
 
 VOJ . I. E 
 
CANTEllBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 26 
 
 dilapidations, is most admirable ; the details, delicately wrought, 
 are calculated to bear even the closest examination. 
 
 At the same period the font, which was enriched with sculpture, 
 and had been presented to the church by that munificent prelate, 
 John Warner, Bishop of Bochester, and founder of Bromley College, 
 was broken to pieces. Various engraved brasses and other orna- 
 ments were, at the same time, torn from the tombs, and the nave or 
 body of the church was converted into a barrack for military. 
 
 After the Bestoration of Charles II. the Cathedral was repaired, 
 and new stalls were erected in the choir for the dean and preben- 
 daries of the church, besides other requisites for the performance of 
 divine service in a suitable manner. The stalls were constructed 
 in the prevailing Italian taste, and were notin accordance with the 
 general character ol the architecture of the church. The stalls of 
 the monks, with other ancient seats remaining in the choir, were 
 taken down by order of the chapter in 1704, and were replaced by 
 new ones ; at the same time an archiepiscopal throne was given to 
 the church by Archbishop Tenison. On the enrichments of the 
 panelling, Gibbons, the celebrated carver, appears to have been 
 employed. 
 
 In the year 1729 a Corinthian altar screen was substituted for 
 that which had been presented by Queen Mary, and about the 
 same time the chancel was paved with black and white marble ; 
 but the expense of both was defrayed, not by the prebendaries, but 
 by legacies bequeathed for the purpose. 
 
 At the time of the extensive reparations of the Cathedral Church 
 by Prior Goldstone, in the reign of Henry VIII., the exterior of the 
 easternmost part, called Becket’s Crown, had been intended to be 
 altered, upon a plan corresponding with other improvements of the 
 edifice, and was probably meant to have been surmounted by pin- 
 nacles. The progress of the work being suspended by circumstances 
 attending the reformation of religion, it remained in an unfinished 
 state till the year 1748, when Captain Humphrey Pudner contri- 
 buted largely towards its completion, and the chapter have the 
 credit, in expending the money bequeathed to them, of giving this 
 part of the church something like a finished aspect. 
 
 Time has now begun to show the mark of his resistless power 
 upon the exterior of the Cathedral ; the western transept, the 
 

 
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CANTERBURY CATHEDRAE. 
 
 27 
 
 northern side of the nave, with the arcade of the cloister, betray the 
 perishable nature of the materials employed in their construction. 
 Partial restorations have been made, and have been generally exe- 
 cuted with reference to the character of the original design ; 
 instances of which may be mentioned as existing in the front of 
 St. Anselm’s Chapel, the gable of the eastern transept, the pinnacles 
 surmounting the buttresses of the nave, and in various other parts ; 
 all of which are surpassed by the north-western tower of the church 
 rebuilt from the ground ; the first stone of this important structure 
 was laid on 3rd September, 1832. 
 
 In every view of the city the Cathedral rises with magnificence ; 
 but on a near approach there is a great want of that space which 
 is absolutely necessary to give due effect to a building of such mag- 
 nitude. The Cathedral, although of less elevation than that of 
 York, is perhaps more pleasing altogether, in consequence of its 
 unrivalled central tower, 234 feet high and 35 feet in diameter. 
 The tower, having two series of windows of most elegant design, 
 is no higher to the platform than that of York Cathedral, but is 
 greatly superior, owing to its beautiful proportions. The Cathedral 
 of Canterbury is built in form of a cross, with a semicircular apsis, 
 or eastern end ; the total exterior length is 545 feet by 156 feet in 
 breadth, taking its dimension at the eastern transept. The circular 
 chapel on the east, called Becket’s Crown, is a unique example in 
 the plan of this church. 
 
 There are not many situations where even the parts of the 
 Cathedral can be seen to advantage on account of the contiguous 
 buildings. The northern side, from the earliest time, appears to 
 have been closely enveloped by monastic offices, and the other 
 sides of the church can only be partially seen. The exterior walls 
 contain several enriched entrances of various antiquity, of which 
 that leading into the martyrdom is the most distinguished by 
 ornament, and was probably constructed by Prior Henry Eastry, 
 in the reign of Edward I. This was the doorway by which the 
 Archbishop formerly entered the church from the palace, excepting 
 on occasions of peculiar solemnity. 
 
 From the martyrdom is a descent to the undercroft or crypt, 
 one of the most interesting parts of the church ; it is of greater 
 extent, and more lofty than any other in England. The extreme 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 internal length of this curious and most beautiful structure is 230 
 feet from the western to the eastern end, and its breadth at the 
 transept is 130 feet this also is cruciform in plan, and the prin- 
 cipal part, 83 feet six inches from wall to wall, is divided into a 
 nave and aisles by lines of short massive pillars supporting low 
 arches upon the same plan as, and forming a support to, the choir 
 above.'^ From the western extremity to the distance of 150 feet 
 eastward is the oldest part of the crypt, but upon the subject of its 
 precise date antiquaries do not at all agree. Its erection is with 
 some propriety ascribed to Archbishop Lanfranc. The eastern 
 part of the crypt under the Trinity Chapel is constructed with 
 pointed arches, and the pillars vary in some degree from those 
 more westward. The ancient capitals to the short and rudely 
 formed pillars are enriched with fantastic devices, but it would 
 be difficult to conjecture what these sculptures, existing in their 
 original perfection, are intended to typify. Part of the groining 
 of the arches has been painted, and the whole crypt appears to 
 have been illuminated by lamps suspended from iron rings which 
 remain at the intersection of the groins. 
 
 The chief object of attraction formerly was the chapel of the 
 Virgin Mary, or, as it was called, the chapel of our Lady Under- 
 croft, situated beneath the high altar of the Cathedral, and en- 
 closed on either side by open screen work. The present state ot 
 this chapel presents a strong contrast to its ancient splendour ; 
 the only decoration now remaining is on the vaultings, which have 
 been of a bright blue colour, ornamented with small convex 
 mirrors rayonnated with gilding, and interspersed with gilded 
 quatrefoils. In the centre are painted the royal arms, and as many 
 as forty shields are emblazoned on the lower part of the arches.*^ 
 The greater number appear to relate to the court of KingHenry VI., 
 but as there are many shields of antecedent and of subsequent date, 
 it is probable that some alluded to earlier benefactors, and that 
 
 Grimbald’s crypt at Oxford, with which some points of similarity have been ob- 
 served, is only 36 feet in length, by 20 feet 10 inches in breadth. 
 
 The formation of the Flemish Church in the undercroft occasioned the breaking 
 open windows by which it is lighted ; these, and the entrance in front of the eastern 
 transept, have contributed to weaken the building. 
 
 “ These are, every one, particularly described in "Willement’s Heraldic Notices of 
 Canterbury Cathedral. 
 
41 
 
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CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 29 
 
 additions were made at different periods, in compliment to the 
 more eminent contributors at the shrine of the Virgin Mary. 
 Simplicity and strength characterize the whole extent of the under- 
 croft, but the piety of individuals has caused the introduction of 
 several richly-ornamented monuments. Leland, an antiquary of the 
 sixteenth century, states that there were no less than ten arch- 
 bishops of Canterbury buried in the crypt ; some large marble 
 slabs with indications of mitred figures yet remain, but no en- 
 graved effigies in brass are now to be found in any part of the 
 Cathedral. Saint Dunstan, who died in the year 988, and of 
 whom so many legendary stories are reported, is said to have been 
 buried in the crypt of this church, and it is certain that a tomb of 
 great height was erected to his memory at the western end, but 
 Avas demolished at the Reformation.'® 
 
 Archbishop Becket, who was murdered in the church in 1170, 
 Avas also buried in the crypt. He was canonized two years after 
 his death, and in 1221 his body was removed to a rich shrine at the 
 eastern end of the church.’®. The screen of the chapel in the crypt 
 which originally contained his remains, is executed in a style ot 
 superior excellence. A defaced monument in the crypt, of Isabel, 
 Countess of Athol, the daughter of Richard de Chilham, Avho died 
 at Chilham Castle, in 1292, is the most ancient tomb of a lay person 
 within the Avails of this Cathedral. 
 
 The southern transept of the crypt was formerly a Chantry 
 Chapel, founded by Edward, Prince of Wales, in 1363, who en- 
 dowed it with the manor of Vauxhall, near London; the whole 
 surface of the vaulting of this chapel is covered with intersecting 
 ribs. 
 
 Joan, Lady Mohun, who died in 1395, is buried in the under- 
 croft ; her tomb, near the eastern end of the great crypt, contains 
 
 The offerings at the shrine of St. Dunstan tempted the monks of Glastonbury to 
 assert that they were in possession of his relics, which had been translated thither from 
 Canterbury in the year 1012. Archbishop Warham caused his tomb to be opened April 
 20th, 1508, when a leaden coffin was found, and a small plate on the breast of the body 
 contained in it, inscribed. Hie Eequiesoit Sanctus Dunstanus Archiepiscopus. — Oostling's 
 p. 273 ; on the authority of Somner^ an antiquary of high character. The arch" 
 bishop then sent letters to the abbot and monks of Glastonbury, strictly charging them 
 to desist from their pretensions. 
 
 '* Two large volumes containing an account of the miracles wrought at his tomb 
 were kept in the church. 
 
30 CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 her effigies under a canopy, and is said to have been constructed 
 during her lifetime.*’ 
 
 One of the arches on the southern side of the Lady Chapel in 
 the undercroft is occupied by a monument of Archbishop Car- 
 dinal Morton, who died in the year 1500. The semicircular 
 sweep of the Anglo-Norman arch is enriched with canopied figures 
 of saints, ^having also an inner moulding charged with his own 
 device, the royal badges of the house of Tudor, and the Cardinal’s 
 hat. The effigies of the archbishop rest on an altar-tomb beneath 
 this superb canopy ; the whole is much mutilated. St. John the 
 Baptist’s Chapel, erected by Archbishop Cuthbert, is now walled 
 up. That part of the crypt or undercroft which extends under the 
 Trinity Chapel has eight large double columns and two slender 
 pillars in the middle, some of the arches in this part are semicir- 
 cular, and others pointed ; there is also at the extreme eastern end 
 another crypt under Beclcet’s Crown. 
 
 Christ’s-church Gate, the principal avenue from the city to 
 the precincts of the Cathedral, was erected in the early part of 
 the reign of Henry VIII., and is a singularly fine specimen of 
 enriched Tudor architecture. The spandrils of both the large 
 and small arches of the gatehouse are charged with the arms 
 of Cardinal Morton, of Archbishop Warham, and of the Priory of 
 Christ’s-church : on the bosses of the vaulting to the archways 
 are sculptured the badges of Priors Goldstone and Gold well, and 
 the arms of Wolsey, Archbishop of York. The massive wooden 
 gales are also carved with the arms of the see of Canterbury 
 impaling those of Archbishop Juxon on one side, and with the 
 arms of the deanery of Canterbury on the other ; above the 
 arches is an inscription, still legible, denoting the exact period of 
 its erection : 
 
 ‘^oc opus construttum £St anno bommi nn'llcstmo qumgentessimo 
 Ijtctmo sfpti'mo. 
 
 Above the inscription is a succession of compartments, contain- 
 ing shields of the Royal arms, and of those of several of the nobility 
 
 If On the verge of the slab was inscribed, ipour IDttu par lame he 3ef)ane 
 13urmasf)e que fut 3Bame he Jllo^un. It is now almost obliterated as well as the 
 arras which were painted in various parts. 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Of 
 
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 and gentry of this county, thirteen in number. The whole front of 
 this gatehouse is highly enriched with ornaments elaborately 
 wrought in stone, but is much defaced. 
 
 The western front of the Cathedral Church is the work of Prior 
 Chillenden, a skilful architect, in the reign of Richard II., who 
 superintended the rebuilding of the nave, under Archbishops 
 Arundel and Chicheley ; the entrance on this front bears some 
 resemblance to the great porch of Westminster Hall, which was 
 erected at the same period. The very ancient campanile or bell 
 tower, on the northern side,'® has been lately replaced by a magni- 
 ficent tower, corresponding with that erected at the expense of 
 Archbishop Chicheley, on the southern side. 
 
 The bold graduated buttresses of the Chicheley tower are of very 
 graceful proportion ; the building, 130 feet in height, is surmounted 
 by an embattled roof, and pinnacles rising nearly ^0 feet above the 
 parapet. The southern side of the nave is buttressed, and well 
 lighted by eight lofty windows, having a similar number of open- 
 ings in the clerestory between flying buttresses and pinnacles. At 
 the base of this tower is the grand southern porch, a singular 
 instance of such a position in cathedral architecture. The ceiling 
 of this porch is ornamented by intersecting ribs handsomely dis- 
 posed, and at each intersection is sculptured a shield of arms. 
 The arms of Archbishop Chicheley being introduced, confines the 
 period of its erection between the years 1413 and 1443, during 
 which time he held this see ; and from the other arms its date is 
 decidedly fixed to about the year 1422. At the angles of the porch 
 are grotesque water spouts. 
 
 The lower parts of both the western towers are open to the 
 nave and aisles, and the ceilings of both are enriched with tracery. 
 The great western window is filled with painted glass, chiefly 
 figures of apostles and kings. The nave of the church is formed 
 
 Known as Lanfranc’s, although of earlier date, and was also called the Arundel 
 Tower. This magnificent tower is particularly described in “ A Treatise on Construc- 
 tion in Norman Architecture,” written, it is believed, by Mr. Buckler, and printed in the 
 Gentleman’s Magazine for January and October, 1833. Canterbury (says the intelli- 
 gent author) is still rich in the treasures of ancient architecture. But the destruction 
 of its noblest and most interesting specimens, the Arundel tower, and a splendid relic 
 of St. Augustine’s monastery, has severed the chain of illustration belonging to the 
 records of its architectural history. 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 3^Z 
 
 by a series of clustered pillars on each side, supporting pointed 
 arches, above which are the clerestory windows, rendering it very 
 light ; the aisles are comparatively narrow. The shields of arms 
 sculptured on the intersections of the vaulting ribs are evidently of 
 the time of King Kichard II., but those on the ceiling under the 
 great central tower were put up at the latter end of King 
 Henry Vllth’s reign. The heraldic embellishments were carefully 
 attended to in the restoration of the Cathedral, under the taste 
 of the late dean, the Honourable and Very Reverend Hugh 
 Percy, D.D. The undertaking embraced substantial repair in the 
 most important points. Seven of the shields on the bosses of the 
 nave were found to be totally defaced ; on these were sculptured 
 armorial bearings appertaining to the present dignitaries of the 
 church ; amongst these are the arms of Dean Andrews, under whom 
 the restoration was commenced.^® 
 
 Attached to the easternmost pillars of the nave are ornamented 
 braces constructed by Prior Goldstone, to strengthen the angles of 
 the central tower ; they are pierced with quatrefoils, and bear the 
 motto of the Prior,— nohts Bomme stt nomint luo ha 
 glorfant. Cardinal Morton contributed largely towards its erec- 
 tion. A flight of several steps leads from the nave to the choir 
 and to the aisles, where also are steps leading to the Trinity Chapel. 
 The various flights of steps and the different levels of the nave and 
 transept constitute a peculiar feature in the architecture of this 
 Cathedral. 
 
 The choir screen, one of the most beautiful in the kingdom, 
 was erected by Prior Henry Eastry. In niches on each side the 
 arch of entrance are statues of the kings of England from John 
 to King Richard II., in succession. One of these holds the model 
 of a church in his hand. The organ now placed in a gallery over 
 this screen is the same that was erected for the commemoration of 
 Handel in Westminster Abbey Church in 1784. 
 
 The choir with its aisles is remarkable for the peculiar cha- 
 racter of the architecture, and interesting from the circumstance 
 of its erection having been described by a contemporary historian, 
 Gervase, of Canterbury. The Anglo-Norman imitations of Corin- 
 thian columns in the choir, and the pointed arches, are the earliest 
 Willement’s Heraldic Notices, p. 85. 
 

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CANTERBUR'S CATHEDRAL. 
 
 33 
 
 and most curious instances of the kind in the kingdom. In dimen- 
 sion the choir is 150 feet by 40 feet. The introduction of pointed 
 arches, at the eastern end of the Trinity Chapel, appears, at first 
 view, to have been intended principally to give a narrow division 
 of the colonnade, the same height of arch as to a wider one, so as 
 to presere a uniformity in the line of columns : hut as the choir 
 contains both semicircular and pointed arches at various divisions 
 on each side of the building, it is concluded, that at the period of 
 its erection the architects were on the eve of bringing into general 
 use a new style with pointed arches, but could not at once 
 resign the semicircular arch, which had been so long considered 
 as perfection in architecture. Between the architraves springing 
 from the columns of the first story, rises a slender pillar, uniting 
 with those forming the triforium, or gallery, on the second story, 
 the arches of which take the pointed sweep. From the capitals of 
 these pillars spring the ribs of the groins, on the third story, in 
 which is another gallery, with pointed arches ; these at the extre- 
 mity, on either side, at the termination of the apsis, taking an 
 extraordinary sweep at their springing from the pillars.*® 
 
 The Trinity Chapel, situated eastward of the choir, may be 
 regarded as one of the most singular architectural curiosities in 
 England. The device of using double columns in this part of the 
 building seems to have originated in a view to preserve lightness 
 and gain additional strength. The foliage of the capitals of these 
 double columns is sculptured with much taste and ability, and very 
 ingeniously varied. The triforia are here continued, but owing to 
 the contracted distance of the columns, the lower arches are 
 exceedingly acute : the ornamental mouldings are principally the 
 chevron and billet.^i 
 
 The windows of this chapel, of painted glass, are interesting 
 from their antiquity, and from the extreme brilliancy of the colours ; 
 but they are so complicated in their design, that considerable time 
 would be employed in the investigation and description of them.** 
 They consist of a variety of circles and squares, each containing 
 
 Carter’s Ancient Architecture of England, p. 32. 
 
 "Woolnoth’s History and Description of Canterbury Cathedral, p. 71. 
 
 ” Goatling, in his “'Walk in and about the City of Canterbury,” explains many of 
 the subjects by means of a diagram, p. 190 ; and a further elucidation will be found in 
 Batteley’s edition of Somner’s “ Antiquities of Canterbury,” 1703. 
 
 VOL. 1. F 
 
CANTERBTJR'S CATHEDRAL. 
 
 34 
 
 an historical subject, chiefly from the Old Testament ; hut the 
 passion of Saint Thomas of Canterbury, with the legend of his 
 miracles, is said to form a part. Richly ornamented borders, com- 
 posed of the same brilliant colours, are so interwoven with the 
 pieces of history, that the appearance of the whole, although 
 extremely splendid, is confused. Labels with a name, or circum- 
 stance, inscribed, denote the particular subject; as over a walled 
 castle is to be observed BABILONE : but, from the great height 
 of the windows, and the size of the letters being small, are not 
 sufficiently legible to develope the chain of history intended to be 
 conveyed by their means. These windows present some of the 
 finest specimens of the early state of the art of painting on glass 
 in the kingdom, naving been probably executed in the reign of 
 Henry III. ; they are chiefly composed of what is termed pot- 
 metal, glass stained in the manufactory, the outlines and shadows 
 being formed by the lead divisions, and the faces only painted.®* 
 The windows on the southern side of the chapel, and in the aisle of 
 the choir on the same side, have been mutilated, and are nearly all 
 plain glass : but those on the northern side having been better pro- 
 tected externally by the contiguous buildings, have suffered much 
 less from wanton destruction. In the Trinity Chapel is a tesse- 
 lated pavement, the only indication of the shrine of St. Thomas-a- 
 Becket ; there are also some very curious large tiles, with figures, 
 representing the signs of the zodiac, rudely designed, and of very 
 early execution. On the northern side of Trinity Chapel is a 
 chantry, erected for the purpose of containing an altar, at which 
 mass might be said, for the repose of the souls of Henry IV. and 
 his queen : it is a beautiful little structure, vaulted and lighted by 
 two windows. The extreme eastern end of the Cathedral Church 
 is formed by a circular chapel, called Becket’s Crown. The same 
 style of architecture is here preserved in the triforia, but the sup- 
 porting columns are converted into slender clusters, attached to 
 the wall between semicircular headed openings ; the ribs of the 
 ceiling, springing from these clustered pillars, meet in the centre 
 in a sculptured boss. The walls of this chapel were formerly 
 
 A re-arraTigement of these curious windows, which would require additional glass, 
 would very much improve the effect. 
 
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 painted in fresco, part of which is to be seen, representing St. 
 Christopher, over the monument of Cardinal Pole. Here is a 
 marble chair, formerly used in the ceremony of the enthronization 
 of the archbishops of Canterbury.^* 
 
 From the northern arch are entrances to the prebends’ vestry, 
 formerly the chapel of St. Andrew, the treasury, or deposit for 
 reliques, and auditory. A passage from the eastern transept, on 
 this side the church, leads to the baptistry; recesses in this 
 transept formerly contained altars to St. Martin and St. Stephen. 
 The situation of the baptistry militates against the idea of this 
 being its original destination. Baptism, a ceremony of initiation, 
 was customarily performed near the western entrance of churches 
 and even in the porch. This building, which is octangular in its 
 plan, was probably part of the prior’s lodgings. The small 
 windows are all filled with painted glass, exhibiting little mitred 
 figures, with crosiers, etc., not anatomically correct in their 
 proportions, the heads of all being somewhat too large. The old 
 font, before mentioned, is here preserved, the broken fragments 
 having been collected by Somner the antiquary, who carefully 
 restored it, in the reign of Charles II. Eastward of the bap- 
 tistry is the Cathedral library, erected on the site of the prior’s 
 chapel. 
 
 The northern transept is called the Martyrdom ; and the precise 
 spot, before the altar of St. Benedict, where St. Thomas-a-Becket 
 was slain, is marked on a marble slab in the pavement. In the 
 Martyrdom King Edward I. was married to Margaret of France 
 by Archbishop Winchelsea, in the year 1299. In the great 
 northern window of painted glass are figures, in the upper com- 
 partments, of prophets, apostles, and canonized bishops, in splendid 
 costume ; beneath are portraits of King Edward IV., Queen 
 Elizabeth Widvile, Richard Duke of York, etc. : the background 
 of the King’s portrait is per pale, murrey, and blue, seme of 
 roses argent, rayonnated or.^^ On the eastern side of the Mar- 
 tyrdom is our Lady’s, or Jesus Chapel, but usually called the 
 
 The archbishops are sometimes enthroned by proxy. 
 
 The stone work, at the back of the stalls, in the southern aisle, was formerly 
 painted in stripes of the same colours, and ornamented with the royal badge. Of this 
 decoration a very careful drawing was made by Mr. 'William Deeble, about the year 
 1816. The whole is now obliterated. 
 
S6 
 
 CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Dean’s Chapel, from its containing the monuments of several of 
 the deans of Canterbury. The screen of open arches, surmounted 
 by canopies, is a beautiful ornament. In this chapel are two 
 windows towards the north, and one in the east, all of which are 
 finely adorned with sculpture round the mouldings. The eastern 
 window is surrounded by vine-leaves and grapes ; in it are several 
 circles of stained glass, containing armorial badges of the Bourchier 
 family, besides the quarries of glass which are ornamented with 
 the Bourchier knot and the device of Woodstock. The mother 
 of Archbishop Bourchier was the daughter and heiress of Thomas 
 of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester, and this badge appears to have 
 been adopted in allusion to the archbishop’s descent. 
 
 The cloisters of this Cathedral, differing from the usual arrange- 
 ment, are situated on its northern side, having an enriched doorway 
 leading from the Martyrdom. The ambulatory, 134 feet in 
 dimension, is vaulted with a scries of converging groins, having at 
 the intersections of the ribs either bosses, composed of those 
 beautiful varieties of foliage common in pointed architecture at an 
 early period, or shields, sculptured with the arms of the benefactors 
 to the church, in number eight hundred and eleven. These were 
 originally emblazoned in their proper colours, and the whole, when 
 perfect, must have produced an extraordinary splendid effect. The 
 arms on these shields appear to have been selected in commemora- 
 tion of King Henry IV., his family, the dignitaries of the church, 
 the principal nobility, and those persons who, induced by their 
 connection with the church, or county of Kent, had contributed 
 towards the erection of this beautiful cloister, presenting an 
 interesting memorial of the great and powerful landed proprietors 
 of that period. The southern walk of the cloister, less likely to 
 be intruded upon by the conventual attendants, was formerly 
 appropriated to meditation and prayer, and was glazed by Prior 
 Sellinge, who, in order to fix attention upon devout subjects, 
 painted the walls with texts of scripture. The area of the cloister 
 is used as a cemetery, and various monumental tablets are affixed 
 to the walls. 
 
 The eastern walk of the cloister opens upon the chapter-house, 
 a lofty apartment, ninety-two feet by thirty-seven feet in dimension, 
 having on either side a continued series of pillars and arches, rising 
 


 C- id AIL ^ 
 
 I Kci.'.r th i: c'l.o.isTEns 
 
;v> *■ r 
 
 

% 
 
9 
 
CANTEKBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 37 
 
 from the stone seats, upon which the monks formerly sat in full 
 chapter. At the eastern end is a throne, or enriched stall, for the 
 prior. The erection of the chapter-house appears to have been 
 in progress during the time that intervened from Prior Eastry to 
 Prior Chillenden. At the eastern and western extremities are 
 corresponding windows, bearing the name and arms of Chillenden ; 
 that on the west contains some remains of its original painted 
 glass, in figures representing the orders of the hierarchy, inscribed 
 
 ©hfruhtm, ^ncjclt, ^rchangcli, Uirtutcs, ^otcstates, 
 
 53ointnatlonfS. On the northern side the surface of the upper 
 wall is broken by four panelled arches, corresponding to windows 
 opposite which give light. The ceiling forms an elegant vault, 
 enriched with gilded ribs on a white ground, having roses, 
 stars, and shields at the intersections. Here also are heraldic 
 embellishments, at the points of the windows and on the ceiling, 
 the last parts that were completed, and are of King Henry IVth’s 
 time. All the upper part of the chapter-house was the work of 
 Chillenden, while the original stall-work, which surrounds the 
 base, was the erection of his intelligent predecessor Prior Eastry. 
 The floor of the room is formed chiefly of large monumental slabs 
 of marble, stripped of their brasses, which were removed from the 
 nave of the church. 
 
 The western transept on the southern side of the church contains 
 St. Michael’s Chapel, the ceiling of which has ribs enriched with 
 gilding and heraldic ornaments referring to the Duke of Clarence 
 and Earl of Somerset ; it is supposed to have been erected in the 
 time of Archbishop Sudbury. More eastward is another transept 
 and St. Anselm’s Chapel, having the lower part of the arch, which 
 divides it from the southern aisle, filled up with the tomb of 
 Archbishop Mepham. 
 
 There are monuments remaining in this church of the following 
 archbishops of Canterbury, most of which are placed, either at the 
 entrance to or around the choir, some in the southern aisle, and 
 others on the north side. The tomb of Archbishop Theobald, who 
 died in 1162, against the wall of the southern aisle of the Trinity 
 Chapel, contains four quatrefoils, in each of which is a head in 
 alto-relievo, said to represent the ecclesiastical preferments of 
 
58 CANTERBUKY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Theobald to the successive dignities of prior, abbot, archbishop, 
 and legate. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Hubert Walter, who died in the 
 year 1207, fills a recess beneath a window in the southern aisle. 
 The effigy of the prelate is very much mutilated. The tomb of 
 Archbishop Cardinal Langton, who died in 1228, is singularly fixed 
 in the wall of St. Michael’s Chapel, and is marked with a sculptured 
 cross on the top. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Peckham, who died in 1292, 
 against the northern wall of the Martyrdom, has an enriched 
 canopy and ornamented basement ; the effigy of the archbishop is 
 of oak, and was most probably originally covered with metal. 
 
 The effigy of Archbishop AValter Reynolds fills a recess in a 
 window of the southern aisle ; it is defaced. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Simon Mepham, who died in 
 1333, fills the arch of entrance to St. Anselm’s Chapel in the 
 southern aisle. In the quatrefoils of the canopy the four evan- 
 gelists are curiously represented ; both the screen and sarcophagus 
 are designed with taste. 
 
 The canopied effigy of Archbishop Stratford, who died in 1341, 
 lies on a tomb in the southern aisle, against the high altar of the 
 church. Slender buttresses, crowned with pinnacles, divide the 
 canopy into three principal arches, each again subdivided by two 
 small buttresses into three florid canopies. The front of the 
 sarcophagus is enriched with arches springing from clustered pillars 
 and pedestals, formerly sustaining figures. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Sudbury, who was beheaded in 
 1381, is in the northern aisle, nearly parallel with the altar ; it bears 
 no effigy, but is surmounted by a sumptuous canopy of very elegant 
 architectural design, but now much mutilated. 
 
 The cenotaph of Archbishop Courtenay, who died in the year 
 1396, and was buried at Maidstone, is in the Trinity Chapel. It 
 consists of an altar-tomb enriched on the sides with blank arches, 
 upon w'hich rests a figure of the archbishop with his hands raised 
 in the attitude of prayer. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Chichcley, founder of All Souls 
 College, Oxford, who died in the year 1443, is in the northern 
 aisle. It was erected during the lifetime of the prelate, and exhibits 
 
0 \ ■I";:-; 'A 4 J.i':. 
 
 
CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 39 
 
 hIs effigy robed in pontifical vestments, the minutiae of which, as the 
 pall, ring, jewels, &c., are studiously expressed ; the hands as usual 
 are joined and elevated, and the pastoral staff lying between his right 
 arm and body is surmounted by a cross patee. At his head are 
 attendant angels, and at his feet two kneeling monks, with books 
 open before them. The sides of the tomb, or table, are pierced 
 with arches disclosing a cadavar. Over the tomb is a flat canopy 
 resting on two piers, each having three faces and a double tier of 
 niches, once containing figures of the twelve apostles. Most of the 
 original figures were demolished at the time of the Reformation, 
 and others have since been substituted. The comparatively modern 
 cast of character in these figures has subtracted from the air of 
 originality which graced this interesting record of departed great- 
 ness. The society of All Souls College have recently, with exem- 
 plary care, rescued this monument from a state of decay, and 
 restored its pristine exuberancy of decoration. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Kemp, who died in 1454, is 
 placed in the southern aisle fronting the eastern transept ; the tomb 
 is without an effigy, but is surmounted by a rich and elaborate 
 canopy of three arches, on the top of which is a cornice of angels 
 standing, each between two shields. 
 
 One of the most chaste and elegant monuments in the church 
 is that of Archbishop Bourchier, who died in 1486. It is in the 
 northern aisle: the tomb is large, and of considerable height, 
 adorned with niches and canopies. Over the tomb is an arch, the 
 soffit of which is delicately enriched. The outer edge of the arch 
 is sculptured with flowers and knots alternately, and the cornice 
 with shields of arms and other decorations. The monument is 
 crowned with an open screen of richly tabernacled niches, separated 
 by open arches, and a cornice of foliage. 
 
 An open chantry in the northern transept, or Martyrdom, com- 
 memorates Archbishop Warham, who died in 1534. It contains 
 an altar-tomb supporting an effigy, and is surmounted by an 
 architectural canopy. This monument was repaired in 1796, at 
 the expense of the dean and chapter. On the lower part of the 
 tomb are shields, on which the arms have been painted in a style 
 highly inconsistent with the date of its erection, and in some 
 instances differing from the original charges. 
 
40 
 
 CAKTERBURY CATHEDRAL. 
 
 On the northern side of Bechet’s Crown is a tomb in memory 
 of Cardinal Archbishop Pole, who died in 1558, the last Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury interred in this church ; the monument is 
 perfectly plain, but was formerly painted in fresco. 
 
 There are numerous monumental remains of royal and eminent 
 personages in the various chapels of this Cathedral; the most 
 remarkable and interesting are those in Trinity Chapel, of Edward 
 Prince of Wales, called the Black Prince, who died in 1367, with 
 his effigy of brass, gilt and burnished. It is an altar-tomb, of 
 marble, the sides and ends of which are enriched with quatrefoil 
 panels and copper shields enamelled, bearing the arms of the 
 prince, and the motto |^OUniont,^® alternately with three golden 
 ostrich feathers, on a black ground, each quill passing through a 
 scroll inscribed Ec]^ htcnc. The head of the prince rests on his 
 helmet ; at his feet lies a lion ; the margin of the canopy, over the 
 tomb, is charged with fleur-de-lis and leopards’ faces.^’ The mo- 
 nument of King Henry IV., who died in 1413, and Queen Joano 
 of Navarre, his second wife, who died in 1437, is an altar-tomb of 
 alabaster, richly sculptured, and was originally gilt and painted ; on 
 the top are the cumbent effigies of Henry and his queen, robed. 
 Over the tomb is a canopy, enriched with painting and gilding, and 
 bearing the arms of the king. The kneeling figure of Dean 
 Wotton, who died in 1566, is also a very remarkably fine piece of 
 sculpture. He was Privy Councillor to King Henry VIII., Edward 
 VI., Queen Mary, and Elizabeth ; and was regarded as an eminent 
 statesman. 
 
 2® This motto is composed of the German words Hoogh, high, and moei, mind, which 
 united with Ich Dien, I serve, implied a loyal devotion to a superior, and claiming to 
 himself a lofty magnanimous spirit. Of these mottoes the prince was specially tenacious. 
 
 There still remains in the chapel a very beautifully- wrought shield, and a surcoat, 
 which are said to have been worn by this prince ; they bear the same charges as the 
 just-a-corps of the effigy, excepting the label, which is omitted in both of them. To 
 these also belong a helmet, covered with the red chapeau and faced with crimson, ou 
 which stands the golden lion, the label of cadency again omitted. 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL, 
 
 The Cathedral' of York is believed to have been erected on the 
 site of a wooden church or oratory, founded as early as A. D. 627, 
 by Edwyn, King of Northumberland, and dedicated to St. Peter 
 by Paulinus, the first bishop of York, one of the missionaries sent 
 by Pope Gregory, to preach Christianity in England.* The church 
 was afterwards constructed with stone, and was completed by 
 Oswald, the successor of Edwyn in the kingdom of Northumber- 
 land, about the year 642. St. Wilfrid, who is better known as 
 the founder of the churches of Eipon and Hexham, repaired and 
 adorned the church of York about the year 720, but in 741 it was 
 destroyed by fire. The church was rebuilt by Archbishop Egbert, 
 and Avas demolished by the Danes, together with the greater part 
 of the city. 
 
 The first archbishop after the Norman conquest, Thomas, a 
 canon of Bayeaux, who Avas also chaplain to king William, acquired 
 the title of fifth founder, by rebuilding his Cathedral on a grander 
 scale than had hitherto been adopted.* The church of Durham, 
 the only see besides York in the north of England, was rebuilt 
 about the same time.* The existence of this church was but of 
 short duration, for, in the year 1137, the building Avas destroyed 
 
 A It is usually called York Minster, which implies a church served by monastic 
 clergy; a church belonging to a monastery, as were Beverley Minster and Eipon 
 Minster. 
 
 2 Ethelburga, the daughter of Ethelhert, king of Kent, had accepted the hand of 
 Edwyn, who had promised that she and her attendants should enjoy their faith unmo- 
 lested. Paulinus accompanied the princess to Edwyn, and within less than thirty years 
 after the arrival of Augustine, at Canterbury, the province of Northumbria exchanged 
 idolatry for Christianity. — Turner's History of the Anglo-Saxons. The archicpiscopal 
 see of York was instituted in the time of Paulinus. Pope Honorius, in the year 634, 
 sent this prelate the pall, and expressly granted the archbishops of Canterbury and 
 York the mutual power of consecrating each other. It was during the prelacy of 
 Archbishop Thoresby, and in the reign of Edward III., that the Pope determined a 
 long contested claim for superiority, by his decree that the Archbishop of York should 
 bear the title of Primate of England, and the Archbishop of Canterbury Primate of 
 all England. 
 
 s A great many of the Anglo-Saxon churches are said to have been totally con- 
 sumed by fire; this, at least, was the pretext for rebuilding them in the Anglo-Norman 
 reigns. 
 
 * The Bishopric of Carlisle was afterwards founded by King Ilcnry I,, in 1153 and 
 that of Chester by King Henry VIII,, in iSrX. 
 
 VOL. I. G 
 
42 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 by an accidental fire, together with St. Mary’s Abbey, which had 
 been rebuilt by King William Rufus, and thirty-nine parish 
 churches. The Cathedral, after this event, lay in ruins for more 
 than thirty years. In 1171 Archbishop Roger began to rebuild 
 the choir with its crypt, and lived to complete it.® The crypt, 
 undoubtedly the work of Archbishop Roger, is very interesting 
 as a specimen of Anglo-Norman architecture, consisting of a series 
 of massive pillars, which stand within the space of those of the 
 choir ; these are ornamented in spiral lines, and have smaller 
 pillars attached to them, for the s])ringers of the stone roof, which 
 was destroyed with the ancient choir.® 
 
 In the year 1237 Archbishop Walter Grey commenced the 
 erection of the southern transept, and the northern transept was 
 completed in the year 1260 by John Le Romain, treasurer of the 
 church, in the reign of Henry III. He also erected the tower of 
 the Cathedral. His son, John Le Romain, who became Arch- 
 bishop of York in 1285, laid the foundation of the nave on the 7lh 
 April, 1291. This part of the church was completed by his suc- 
 cessor, Archbishop William de Melton, who was also treasurer 
 and chancellor of England. The materials for building the nave 
 of the Cathedral were furnished by Robert de Vavasour, who 
 granted the free use of his quarries, near Tadcaster, not only for 
 the building, but for the future reparation of the Cathedral ; and 
 by Robert Percy, who gave his wood, at Bolton, to be employed 
 in the timber-work of the roof.’ Archbishop John Thoresby laid 
 
 * E<1 wyn’s wooden church is thus noticed in'Gmt’s History of TorJc : — ‘‘ lie caused a 
 little church to be erected of boards and timber, where formerly stood the temple of 
 Diana, or, as some say, Bellona, w hich he devoutly dedicated to the honour of God and 
 St. Peter, and was therein baptized on Easter Sunday, in the year of our Lord 627.” 
 The site of the Cathedral was tradionally that of a Roman temple, and accident has at 
 length confirmed the fact ; the fall of the timbers, during the fire in 1829, broke through 
 the floor of the choir, and discovered the curious crypt below. A further considerable 
 portion of the Anglo-Norman church was exposed, and, closely connected with it towards 
 the west, the lateral foundations of a Roman temple. — Lockwood’s History of the Forti- 
 fications of York, p. 10. 
 
 ® A plan and architectural drawings of this crypt were made in 1832, by P. F. 
 Robinson, Esq. It is chiefly remarkable for its extraordinary massiveness, the pillars 
 being abo>it seven feet high, and nearly the same in circumference ; they are enriched 
 with Anglo-Norman sculpture, and some walls apparently of Roman structure, with her- 
 ring- hone brick work, intersect the foundations. 
 
 7 The memory of these early benefactors to the church is preserved by statues in the 
 buttresses, which were renewed m the year 1813. 
 
T'iJif&lS (e A T 'li 'iii AIL , 
 
 If.v or THh ’'IlAPTEn J!f)rsi. 
 
 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 43 
 
 the foundation of the present choir on the 29th July, 1361, and 
 towards the building, Walter Skirlaw, then archdeacon of the East 
 Riding, largely contributed : the stones were procured from the 
 archbishop’s palace at Shireburn, which was demolished for the 
 sake of the materials. The lantern tower was, at the same time, 
 rebuilt, and bears the arms of Skirlaw on sculptured shields ; 
 other parts of the edifice were finished under the superintendence 
 of Archbishop Bowett, and the western front appears to have been 
 erected by John de Birmingham, treasurer of the church ; his 
 name, with the figure of a bear, is sculptured on the western face 
 of the southern tower. 
 
 The erection of the elegant chapter-house is generally ascribed 
 to AV alter Grey, archbishop in the reigns of John and Henry III., 
 but it is probably of more recent date. On comparing the archi- 
 tecture of the chapter-house with that of the Cathedral, it is 
 found, that the style of the windows and of the buttresses, as well 
 as the introduction of grotesque figures on the parapet of the 
 chapter-house, is very similar to that of the same parts of the nave 
 or western end of the church, which was founded in the year 1291 ; 
 and that some of these peculiarities are not to be found in that part 
 of the church which was built either prior or subsequently to the 
 western end. The date of the architecture of the chapter-house 
 may, with good reason, be fixed at the period of King Edward I. 
 On one of the pillars is inscribed a Latin sentence, in golden let- 
 ters, DT ROSA FLOS FLORDM, SIC EST DOMUS ISTA DOMORIIM.® 
 
 A very careful restoration of the Cathedral, preserving the origi- 
 nal beauty of the decorations, under the sanction of Dean Markham, 
 had been ably executed by Mr. Shout, the master -mason, when 
 great part of the interior of the church was destroyed by fire on the 
 2nd Eebruary, 1829.® The restitution of the choir was entrusted 
 
 ® There were formerly paintings in the ceiling, coeval with the building, some of the 
 most ancient in the kingdom. 
 
 ® It was discovered about seven o’clock in the morning, when nearly the whole of 
 the wood-work of the choir was in flames, which, in about an hour, reached to the 
 roof, and the spectacle, by nine o’clock, was truly awful. Great fears were entertained 
 for the eastern window, but the approach of the fire was stopped by sawing asunder the 
 timbers of the roof, and, by about twelve o’clock, it was subdued. The entire roof of 
 the choir, about 222 feet in length, was demolished, together with the wood- work of 
 the choir, and the organ. This fire was the work of an incendiary, named Jonathan 
 
44 
 
 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 to Sir Robert Sinirke, the expense of which was defrayed by pub- 
 lic subscription. The architect’s first object was to give security 
 to the fabric, and it was found necesssry to rebuild the walls above 
 the arches of the choir, and restore the cornice and battlements. 
 The altar-screen is entirely new, but it is moulded and enriched in 
 the same manner as the old one, the same style of execution having 
 been adopted in the sculpture. Every part of the roof of the choir 
 is constructed with teak, supplied by government, from the stores 
 of well-seasoned timber in the dock-yards, experience having 
 proved the extraordinary strength and durability of teak-timber, 
 in situations where oak and other wood has failed. All the lead 
 with which the new roof is covered, was procured from the mines 
 of the Greenwich Hospital estates. The principal or solid part of 
 all the moulded ribs of the ceiling of the choir is made of teak, 
 forming a strong and durable frame over the whole of the vaulted 
 area ; the mouldings upon the ribs are an interior lining attached 
 to the frame, and are made of a light American wood. This mode 
 of construction, besides possessing great strength, enabled the 
 architect to have the surface of the complex curves of the vaulting 
 formed in a better manner than they were originally made, and 
 admit of the removal and replacing of any part of the mouldings 
 should it ever become necessary from accidental injury. The 
 form of all the ribs, their curves, and manner of intersection, are 
 restored, in every respect, according to the original framing of the 
 ceiling. The designs for the highly enriched and elaborate carved- 
 work of the stalls and seats of the choir were made under the 
 superintendence of Mr. Wild and Mr. Mackenzie, who formerly, 
 on several occasions, had made accurate drawings of these and 
 many other parts of the Cathedral, including the richly-ornamented 
 screens, which extend from the stalls to the altar, inclosing the 
 
 Martin, a religious enthusiast, who concealed himself, after the evening prayers, behind 
 the tomb of Archbishop Grenefield, in the eastern aisle of the north transept. It being 
 Candlemas eve, the ringers, as usual, rang their peal, after the service, and left the 
 church, not at all conscious of the presence of the enemy they were locking within its 
 walls. It was not until about half-past two that Martin commenced his operations, in 
 the choir, and having seen their successful issue, he made his escape, by means of ropes* 
 from the window in the western aisle of the north transept. The incendiary was 
 subsequently tried at the assizes, and acquitted on the ground of insanity, caused by 
 religious fanaticism, but was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment in St. Luke’s Hos- 
 pital in London, where he died. 
 
T'OIRIil vCA’ITHZBmAJL 
 
 REFERENCE TO THE PUN 
 
 A The Nave 
 BB TheAules 
 CC The^est Towers 
 D N Trans ept Se Aisles 
 E X Ti!> 
 
 F Organ Sereen 
 G Chapter ffouse . 
 
 H Record. Rc>om. 
 
 J Aisles of Choir 
 K The Choir 
 
 LL Vestries formerly Chapels 
 M Central Tower 
 N . Lady Chapel . 
 
 O ATmt 
 
 P VestihuU of Chapter House 
 Q Consistoiy Court 
 
 241 Feet 
 
 240 feet 
 
 REFKREHCE TO THE MONVMEHTS 
 
 1 Arckh T Grey.. . 
 
 2 J) T KunetoK 
 
 3 Font 
 
 f TeasuZ Eaxley 
 5 . Archb Gren/eld 
 
 6 IHnceWlUiam.de HaiheldsEffegy 
 
 7 Door Way & Monument of Dean Sig A 
 
 8 S^HeruBellasis 
 
 9 Chancellor Sw mb um.. . . 
 
 20 -ChaMoward E-of Carlisle 
 
 11 HonHenMedleyD'JDalhy ic S^G Savit 
 
 12 Archb F Sterne 
 
 13 Countess Cumherland, 
 
 14 Archb ^ Ereeven. 
 
 15 J)? Rotherhojn. { 
 
 16 DP Matthews i 
 
 17 DP SewaLs. J 
 
 18 DP Sharp DeariFmckSe his 
 
 19 DP BowettScHoruTW/Wenty-'or^ ' 
 
 20 DP Tiers 
 
 21 WWcntworthE. of Stafford i^D^Burgh^ 
 
 22 Archb ^ Lamplugh S: Archh^ Hvttona 
 
 23 S^WGce . ' . , 
 
 24 S.Door ' 
 
 25 Stairs to Record Room, 
 
 26 Door to N Transept 
 
 27 D? to E Aisle of D? 
 
 28 D? to Vestibule of Chapter House 
 
 29 D? to Chapter House 
 
 30 S^Peters Tump 
 
 31 Archb^ S trope 
 
 32 D.^ Dolhen | 
 
 33 Jane Hudson. 
 
 3 4 A rrhb P S avag t 
 

 
TORE CATHEDRAL. 45 
 
 clioir on each side. The tabernacle work over the prehendal seats 
 was carved in London, well seasoned oak having been collected for 
 the purpose in Holland. 
 
 The new carved-work, both in wood and stone, is allowed to be 
 exquisitely beautiful and correct, with a single exception in the stalls ; 
 the surmounting pinnacles, it has been remarked, bear no resem- 
 blance whatever to their originals, which tapered with remarkable 
 delicacy of proportion up to the point where the finlal commenced ; 
 the new pinnacles shoot above the rest of the canopies, and are 
 without substance, and also without distinction of finial." 
 
 The ground plan of the Cathedral is in the usual form of a 
 cross, and is of very considerable dimension, the extreme length 
 from east to west, being about 515 feet, and extending from north 
 to south, at the transept, about 240 feet.'® There are three grand 
 entrances on the western front, one in the southern transept, which 
 is that most frequently used, and an entrance in the northern 
 transept formerly the communication with the ancient archbishop’s 
 palace, which stood on this side the church.'® 
 
 The exterior of York Cathedral, although built at different and 
 distant times, from the reign of Henry III. to that of Henry VII., 
 and comprising a period of more than 250 years, presents a general 
 uniformity in the architecture, and without being distinguished for 
 an elevated site, has an imposing and magnificent appearance 
 amidst the buildings of the city.'* 
 
 Sir Robert Smirke’s Report on the Repairs, 1830. 
 
 " Gentleman’s Magazine for 1833. 
 
 >2 York is usually called the largest of the English Cathedrals, but in length it ap- 
 pears to be exceeded by the churches of Ely, Canterbury, and Winchester, and equalled 
 by that of Lincoln. 
 
 Bishopsthorpe, or Thorp upon Ouse, the present archiepiscopal palace, is situated 
 two miles southward from the city. It was originally erected by Archbishop Walter 
 Grey, in the reign of Henry III. Archbishop Rotheram, the lord chancellor, enlarged 
 the palace in the early part of the reign of Henry VIII. It was nearly rebuilt by 
 Archbishop Drummond, from designs by Thomas Atkinson, of York, about the year 
 1769, when much of the stone used in the structure was brought from Cawood castle, 
 another ancient seat of the archbishops, on the hanks of the Ouse, near Selby. 
 
 Many of the exterior ornaments are of a comparatively modern date, with the 
 more ancient parts of the fabric. The western towers, those gems of the building, were 
 not added till the reign of Henry VII., and to the same period the ornamented battle- 
 ment which surmounts the gable must be attributed. The exterior ornaments of the 
 choir are of a date equally \a.ie.— Carter s Reply to Whittington’s Survey of the Ecclesi- 
 astical Antiquities of France, Letter 6, 
 
4G YORK CATHEDRAL, 
 
 The western front, the most remarkable feature of this venerable 
 edifice, has been compared with the celebrated fa9ade of Eheims 
 Cathedral for richness, sublimity, and beauty of architectural 
 design;'^ it is certainly not surpassed by that of any church in 
 England in its fine proportions, chaste enrichments, or scientific 
 arrangement ; but unluckily its situation is very unfavourable for 
 obtaining a good general view. Notwithstanding the perfect 
 harmony that pervades this unparalleled architectural design, the 
 masonic construction of this part of the building is evidently of 
 different eras. The front of the church, erected in the reign of 
 Edward II., is divided into three grand parts by massive graduated 
 buttresses enriched with tabernacle-work on every face.’® The 
 elevated gable, concealing the roof of the church, is covered with 
 ornamental tracery of the most florid character, having the ridge 
 beautifully terminated with a perforated battlement, the successive 
 gradations of which are crested with a central pinnacle in exquisite 
 taste. The three entrances upon this front are deemed not dispro- 
 portioned to the grandeur of the elevation ; the openings are deeply 
 splayed with numerous shafts, whence flowered mouldings with 
 leaves in the grooves, spring from enriched capitals.” The central 
 porch, opening to the nave, like many other western entrances 
 of churches, is subdivided into two openings by a clustered 
 pillar, but in the space, beneath the deep recess of the arch, 
 is a circular window of six lights, which is an unusual, if not 
 unique enrichment of the porch. The whole of the space, on each 
 side of the entrance, is entirely filled with canopied niches for 
 statues, in ^wo tiers, leaving no part of the surface of the building 
 unornaraented. The magnificent western window, over the porch, 
 is divided into eight lights by upright mullions, which, in the upper 
 
 In the Gentleman’s Magazine for 1809, there is an elevation of this front drawn 
 by Carter. 
 
 This was the age of most richly ornamented buttresses ; those on the western 
 front of York cathedral are amongst the most worthy of selection. — Dallaway’a Bis- 
 courses on Architecture in England, p. 55. 
 
 '7 The Cathedrals of York, Lincoln, and Ely, contain, at this time, not only the 
 most exquisitely wrought and variously designed specimens of sculpture, and minuter 
 carving, but those which remain to us in the greatest perfection. The patterns are 
 composed of geometrical figures with forms of foliage, all very delicately finished. 
 Ballawag, p. 49. The same author also speaks in high terms of the western front of 
 York as most beautiful in point of proportion and.finishing. 
 

 T ■ ■ -^'Tr Qi „ :d a:l . 
 
 W V. 
 

 V 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 47 
 
 part, 'beautifully diverge into what has been not unaplly called 
 flamboyant tracery, a mode of construction peculiar to the four- 
 teenth century. The outer mouldings of this large window are 
 continued by crockets on the gable-formed heading, which also is 
 filled wiih ornamental tracery, and is terminated by an exuberant 
 finial. The sides of the window, between the large buttresses of 
 the towers, consist of four courses of tabernacle-work, the lowest 
 having recessed niches for statues. The towers of the M^estern 
 front, forming the two side divisions, rise to the height of 196 feet 
 from the level ground.'® Above the porches of entrance to the 
 aisles are two tiers of windows ; those on the first tier assimilate 
 in architectural design with the central window, having ornamental 
 tracery in the upper division, and the gable termination. The 
 windows on the second tier are more plain in their design, and are 
 without the gable finish which distinguishes the lower windows. 
 In the spaces between these windows is a course of tabernacle- 
 work, headed with a perforated battlement, and behind the parapet 
 is a gallery of communication. The two great towers of this front 
 rise from the line of the second tier of battlements, having a large 
 window on each of the faces. The angles of each tower and sides 
 cf the windows are bounded by buttresses, in continuation of those 
 which are their main support; they terminate at the upper cornice 
 or course of mouldings, above which the parapets, at the summits 
 of the towers, are composed of tasteful perforated battlements, 
 farther enriched with pinnacles at the angles, and in the centre of 
 each side. At the several springing of the canopies, and the 
 moulding course supporting the battlements of the upper parts, 
 are forms of sculpture partaking of a different character from that 
 of the main front ; the mouldings used in the enrichment of the 
 towers are larger and fewer, and it will not fail to be observed, 
 that the mullions of the windows are divided by a transom, 
 and consequently do not rise in one perpendicular line from the 
 base to the springing of the tracery, as in the windows of the lower 
 tiers. 
 
 The southern front of the Cathedral presents three grand archi- 
 
 • The western tower or spire of Strasbourg is 474 English feet in height, being more 
 than twice as high as the highest pinnacle of the towers of the western front of York 
 Cathedral. 
 
■SOKK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 48 
 
 tecturai divisions, in the nave, transept, and high choir, besides the 
 face of the western tower, and the Louvre tower in the centre of 
 the edifice. 
 
 The line of the nave of the church is in seven divisions or bays 
 made by very elegantly formed buttresses, rising above the parapet 
 of the aisles to the height of 101 feet from the ground, and enriched 
 with open tabernacles for statues. 
 
 The windows of the southern aisle are nearly of the same con- 
 struction with those on the western front, and have the same gabled 
 terminations ending in finials : the ornamental parapet is surmounted 
 by small battlements. The windows of the clerestory, which give 
 light to the nave, correspond also in their tracery with those on the 
 western front of the church, and the embattled parapet, which com- 
 pletes the design, is enriched with finials. Abutting on the western 
 side of the transept is the record-office with the library over it. 
 The erection of the southern transept is ascribed to Walter Grey, 
 Archbishop of York, in the reign of Henry HI., and the style of 
 architecture in its detail exhibits a very different character than 
 that of the nave, but without departing from a general uniformity. 
 The front, one of the best examples of the period in the kingdom, 
 is in three grand divisions, made by octangular buttresses, and 
 turrets at the extremity. The porch on this front is the most usual 
 entrance to the church ; it is deeply recessed by numerous mould- 
 ings in the prevailing manner at the early period at which it was 
 erected. Over the large windows, above the porch, which are 
 without stone mullions or tracery, is a circular, or marygold 
 window, in the gable, a very beautiful decoration ; the gable is 
 surmounted by an enriched pinnacle. 
 
 The choir, rebuilt by Archbishop Thoresby in the reign of 
 Edward III.,*® is of the same height as the nave, but with evident 
 
 Anno 1361, he began the new foundation of the quire of the Cathedral church, 
 towards the charge of which work he instantly laid down one hundred pounds, and 
 promised to contribute two hundred pounds per annum, till it was finished, which he 
 faithfully performed as long as he lived. lie also bestowed great cost in beautifying 
 and painting our Lady’s Chapel with images and pictures of excellent workmanship. 
 The archbishop died at Bishopsthorpe, 6th November, 1373. — Drahe’s Hidory and 
 Antiquities of the Church of York, p. 434. The authoi-’s own copy of this curious 
 antiquarian w<jrk, with his manuscript additions, is now in the possession of Lord 
 Warnclilfe, of Wortley IlalL 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 
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YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 40 
 
 variations of design in the architectural detail. Nearly in the 
 centre of this part of the fabric is a small transept, a remarkable 
 deviation, peculiar to this Cathedral, and which produces an incom^ 
 parably fine effect; it consists of a bold projection, to the extent 
 of the aisle, having in front a mullioned window the whole height of 
 the church. The windows of the eastern part of the choir, and of 
 the Lady Chapel, have a singularly-formed open decorated screen 
 before each of them, such as is only to be met with in this structure. 
 The stone screen work, besides its utility in giving additional 
 strength, and its intrinsic beauty, contributes, by affording deep 
 shadows, to increase the brilliancy of the great eastern window, 
 where the same device is repeated on the interior of the church, 
 and with the same manifest improvement of effect. On the southern 
 side of the church are the treasury and vestries. The central 
 tower, or louvre, for it is left open in the interior, rises 188 feet 
 from the pavement. This structure, one of the principal deco- 
 rations of the church, consists only of one story surmounted by a 
 parapet and battlements, both perforated, and having a large 
 double window upon each face : the angles are strengthened by 
 buttresses, ornamented with tabernacle work.**’ 
 
 "We have here to record another disastrous calamity, by fire, which occurred on the 
 evening of Wednesday, the 20th of May, 1840. The clock was in the course of under- 
 going a thorough repair, at the hands of a person named Groves, from Leeds ; and the 
 most probable statement is, that being employed in the south-western tower, in a 
 chamber the flour of which was covered with dried sticks, leaves, etc., which had been 
 brought there by birds for the purpose of building their nests, he incautiously made use 
 of some lucifer matches to light a candle, and either the matches or the candle set the 
 dried leaves, etc. on fire. The flames were flrst discovered between eight and nine 
 o’clock ; but such was their rapid spread, that by nine o’clock the whole of the upper 
 part of the tower presented one mass of raging flame. The hells soon began to fall in 
 heavy molten masses upon the pavement of the south-west aisle, and in a short space 
 of time the destruction of the tower was completed. Every effort was made to prevent 
 the flames spreading to the roof of the nave, but in vain. The whole was sacrificed, and 
 in the morning that magnificent portion of the Cathedral, presented as melancholy a 
 scene of ruin as the choir had exhibited eleven years before. There is one thing 
 worthy of remark, that at both these fires the rich and invaluable stained glass with 
 which the windows are so profusely decorated, have sustained little or no injury. This 
 is not only gratifying as respects the fabric itself ; but it will be a source of interest to 
 those of antiquarian research, who can here find indisputable evidence relative to ancient 
 ecclesiastical costume, and much also in the way of heraldic information. The only 
 window destroyed at the last fire, was that nearest to the tower, and it was formed en- 
 tirely of plain glass. There is also another circumstance worthy of remarlc that it was 
 in the bell-chamher of the south-western tower, that Jonathan Martin made his first 
 eflhrt to set fire to the Minster, but not being able to succeed here, he then made his 
 essay in the choir. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 II 
 
50 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The eastern front of the church is in three grand divisions,, 
 formed by buttress turrets, wbicb are enriched with panellings, and 
 crowned with crocketted pinnacles. Between the two centre 
 buttresses the entire space is occupied by the eastern window, of 
 surpassing beauty.’* The whole breadth of the window is divided 
 into three principal compartments, which are again sub-divided into 
 nine, and crossed horizontally by two transoms the outward 
 mouldings of the arch rise high above it, and in the heading, thus 
 formed, is an elegant niche, or tabernacle, containing a statue of 
 Archbishop Thoresby, a beautiful memorial of his zeal and 
 liberality in completing the choir of the Cathedral.^ Upon this 
 part of the church the effect of time is very perceptible, the tracery 
 and crockets are fast mouldering away. 
 
 The chapter-house, which is entered from the transept, is 
 situated on the northern front of the church, where the area is less 
 confined than on the opposite side.-^ The front of the northern 
 transept varies in its architectural detail in some degree from that 
 of the southern transept, but presents examples of sculpture 
 
 The lofty and simple form of the pointed arch began in the reign of Richard II 
 to be given np for a lower and more complicated design ; the introduction of the com- 
 pound pointed arch is one mark of the architecture of this period ; but another cha- 
 racteristic difference between this and the preceding style is found in the tracery of 
 large windows. The mnUions, instead of being turned in curves interwoven together 
 are chiefly carried np in perpendicular lines. Of all the windows erected in this style, 
 that on the eastern front of York Minster is the finest ; that of Beverley Minster is a 
 noble imitation of it. The style has been termed Ornamented Gothic, Decorated 
 English, and Perpendicular English. The term Perpendicular, applied to all English 
 buildings erected after the accession of King Richard II. down to the final disuse of 
 the pointed arch, is in this extent of its application liable to certain objections, founded 
 on the s'.rik ng difference of style which the obtuse arch produced after the middle of 
 the fifteenth century, a difference strangely overlooked by Mr. Rickman in his discri- 
 mination of styles ^Remarks on Gothic ArchiUciure, ly Edicard James Wilson. 
 
 ** This manner of arranging the different lights was followed in several of the 
 principal windows of the succeeding century after the flattened arch became 
 fashionable, but of the particular style the eastern window of York Minster is, 
 beyond dispute, the finest in the world. — Pugin's Specimens of Gcthie ArehUecture : 
 voL 1, p. 23. 
 
 The archbishop is represented sitting, robed and mitred, in his episcopal chair, 
 holding in his left hand the model of the church, and seeming to point to this, the 
 finest window in the world, with his right. — Drakds Hist, and Antiq. of the Church of 
 York. p. 486. 
 
 The whole pile of the Chapter-house is an octagon of 63 feet in diameter, the 
 height of it to the middle knot of the roof is 67 feet 10 inches, unsupported by any 
 pillar, and, according to Drake, entirely dependent upon one pin, geometrically placed 
 in the centre ; an assertion which, it is hardly necessary to observe, is erroneous ; the 
 building is strongly supported by eight buttresses. 
 
y 0 'ii 'if C Ai' H i; 'i> iAlj 
 
YOKK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 51 
 
 cliaracteristic of the earliest pointed style : the five tall lancet 
 windows are called the five sisters^ from a tradition that the 
 stained glass with which they are adorned was the gift of five 
 maiden sisters. A cloister, it is supposed, was intended to have 
 been built on this side, but was never executed ; this Cathedral 
 is consequently without cloisters, the usual appendage of large 
 ecclesiastical buildings. 
 
 The nave of the church, began to be rebuilt by Archbishop 
 Romaine, and completed by Archbishop Milton, is 250 feet in 
 length, 103 feet in breadth, and is 92 feet high ; the aisles surround 
 the whole church in every part, and are of the same dimensions in 
 each, and built at the same time. The eight divisions of the nave 
 are marked by clusters of pillars, the bases and capitals of which are 
 very plain, the centre portion of these clustered shafts rises to the 
 springing of the groined ceiling of the nave ; other portions rise only 
 to the springing of the arches of the aisles. The interior of the 
 western end of the nave is highly enriched, and the beautiful effect 
 of the great western window is superior to that of any church in 
 the kingdom. The painted glass represents the portraits of the 
 first eight archbishops, and eight saints, of the church. The arms 
 of King Edward II. and of Ulphus, an Anglo-Saxon benefactor of 
 the church, are here sculptured. A large arch is thrown across the 
 western part of the nave, a contrivance which is admirably 
 calculated to combine, secure, and resist the accumulation of weight 
 which the addition of the upper part of the western towers must 
 necessarily have occasioned at this part of the structure. There 
 are only two stories in the elevation of the nave, as the triforium, or 
 gallery over the aisles, is taken out to a certain height of the 
 windows of the clerestory, the mullions of which, in a pleasing 
 way, form an open screen to the triforium.^® 
 
 The tracery in the headings of the windows, both of the aisles 
 and clerestory, is in the true mode of Edward III.’s reign. These 
 windows, excepting the two under the western towers, retain 
 nearly the whole of the original painted glass.*® The four great 
 
 Architectural Survey of York Cathedral, by Jo/in Carter, F.S.d. 
 
 25 The uppermost window in the northern aisle is called by Drake, the window 
 armorial, the figures in emblazoned surcoats, represent the Kings of England, 
 France, Arragon, the King of the Romans, Castile and Leon, Jerusalem and 
 Navarre; there are also portraits, in their tabards, of the following noble personages 
 
62 
 
 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 arches of the central tower rise the whole height of the nave ; over 
 these is the first story of the lantern tower. The gallery round 
 the lantern, with its perforated parapet, is very elegant, and the 
 windows above, containing some painted glass, give a most brilliant 
 light. The ceiling of the tower is groined. The transepts vary the 
 long line of the structure, and differ in some respects in architectural 
 detail from the nave. The length of each transept, both northern 
 and southern, is in three divisions, and the height is in three 
 stories. The style of the architecture of these transepts, in the 
 earliest pointed manner, differs in some particular instances ; which 
 is more distinctly visible in the five lights, or five sisters, in the 
 northern transept. In the southern transept is the monument of 
 the founder, Archbishop Walter Grey. 
 
 The magnificent screen, at the entrance of the choir, the removal 
 of which occasions so much controversy, contains fifteen statues 
 of the kings of England, all of them, excepting one, ancient ; that 
 of King Henry VI., being the work of Michael Taylor, a sculptor 
 of York, occupies the place of a statue of King James.^’ This 
 screen, a rich and beautiful specimen of the florid style of archi- 
 tecture which prevailed in the reign of Henry VI. has been 
 brought into notice with reference to a supposed defect in the 
 construction of the building. The width of the screen is such that 
 its two extremities conceal, almost entirely, the bases of the two 
 great pillars which support the lantern tower ; being twenty-three 
 feet six inches high, it is in the proportion of about one-eighth to 
 the height of the tower, which is nearly two hundred feet high. 
 During the repair in 1830 a new arrangement was attempted, and 
 a q^uestion arose whether the screen ought to be removed, and 
 placed immediately behind the two great pillars of the tower, 
 
 — Ccauctamp, Clare, 'Warren, Ross, Mowbray, Clifford, and Percy. The arms of 
 Archbishops Scrope and Bowett in several places in these windows, show that they 
 were special benefactors to the church. 
 
 The original imago of King Henry VI. was taken down in compliment to his 
 enemy and successor. King Edward IV., by the Archbishop’s orders, then in being; 
 the cell remained empty till the reign of King James I., at whose first coming to this 
 city, the dean and chapter thought fit to fill up the vacancy with his majesty’s figure. 
 Drake's Ilistorij, p. 521. 
 
 2® The Cathedrals of York and Lincoln are remarkable for the variety and exquisite 
 finishing of all the sculptured ornaments attached to the pillars, and the tabernacle 
 work of the choir and screens,— ilaZ/away. 
 
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YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 53 
 
 instead of in front of them, by which arrangement six of the fifteen 
 statues in the screen must have been concealed, and a portion of 
 this unrivalled work of art, amounting to two-fifths of the whole 
 would have been lost. At the same time, if the screen was brought 
 eastward to the first pillars of the choir, its proportion would have 
 been about one-fourth to the height of the canopy, which is not 
 one hundred feet high. Good taste ultimately prevailed, and the 
 screen was suffered to retain its original position. It was chiefly 
 from the exertions of the venerable Robert Markham, Archdeacon 
 of York, and William Etty, R.A., that this innovation in York 
 Cathedral was not carried into execution. 
 
 The organ was presented by the Hon. and Rev. J ohn Lumley 
 Saville, and was built by Messrs. Elliot and Hill, of London, under 
 the direction of Dr. Camidge, of York. 
 
 The new choir, which was opened on May 6th, 1832, presents a 
 faithful restoration of the ancient architecture of King Edward III.’s 
 reign. It is in nine divisions, the fifth, expanding to a small 
 transept, is peculiarly beautiful in effect. The richly-carved stalls 
 occupy the three first divisions : screens of similar workmanship 
 continue the enclosure to the commencement of the seventh ar- 
 chitectural division, where an enriched altar-screen divides the 
 choir from the Lady Chapel. The choir from the gates to the 
 eastern end is 222 feet by 46 feet 6 inches in dimensions, upon 
 the plan. 
 
 The eastern window is nearly the height and breadth of the 
 choir, its design embraces three principal divisions, formed by two 
 large mullions ; these are again formed into three compartments. 
 The height of the lights to the springing of the arch is also in 
 three stories. The mullions of this beautiful window are doubled 
 in profile to the third story, containing by this extraordinary 
 contrivance two galleries, not only exquisite in effect, but calcu- 
 lated to give a ready and near access to all parts of the wonderful 
 construction, for the view of the numerous paintings, wrought with 
 minute delicacy of pencilling, and for a convenient and easy repair 
 of any object, either of the masonry or the glass. It is 75 feet in 
 height, and 32 feet in breadth. This window was begun to be 
 glazed in the year 1405 ; when the dean and chapter contracted 
 with John Thornton, of Coventry, glazier, to execute it. He was 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 54 
 
 to receive for his own work four shillings a week, and was to finish 
 the whole in less than three years 
 
 The number of historical subjects represented on the glass 
 amounts to at least one hundred and fifteen, chiefly selected from 
 the Old Testament; but the several pieces are much mutilated and 
 disarranged by the unskilful hands employed in the repairs. 
 Almost all the figures are about two feet two inches high, and are 
 very beautifully drawn, resembling the style of the early Italian 
 school of painting.^® In the eastern window of the south aisle is a 
 representation of the meeting of the Virgin Mary and Elizabeth, 
 which originally adorned the eastern window of the church of St. 
 Nicholas, at Eouen, and was presented to the dean and chapter 
 of York by the Earl of Carlisle, K.G., in the year 1804. It is 
 supposed to be a design of Sebastian del Piombo, the pupil of 
 Giorgione, who painted for Pope Clement VIII., contem 2 )orary 
 with King Henry VIII. 
 
 The monuments of the archbishops of York are, with few 
 exceptions, 2 )laced in the aisles of the choir, and in the Lady Chapel. 
 A monument in the north aisle, which is attributed to Archbishop 
 Roger, who died in 1181, is on that account esteemed the oldest in 
 the church, but it is evidently of more modern construction. 
 
 29 The indenture or contract, which is preserved in the archives of the Cathedral, 
 states that he was to have four shillings per week, and one hundred shillings sterling 
 every of the three years, and if he did his work truly and perfectly he was to receive 
 ten pounds more for his care therein. By another indenture, dated in the year 1338, 
 and made for glazing some of the windows at the western end of the church, it is stipu- 
 lated that the workman was to have sixpence a foot for white, and twelve pence a foot 
 for coloured glass — Drake's History of York, p. 527. 
 
 9® This window, says that indefatigable antiquary, Carter, may be adduced as an 
 example of the superiority of English art in this branch of painting over all other coun- 
 tries ; although the figures are multitudinous they are all most exquisitely pencilled, 
 and the faces finished with a delicaey equal to the highest wrought miniatures of the 
 present day. The more remote glass illuminations, as the window called the five sisters, 
 in the northern transept, and other instances at Canterbury and Salisbury, consist of de- 
 signs running principally in architectural forms, as square, diamond shaped, or circular 
 compartments, containing small figures, surrounded by exuberant and beautiful foliages 
 blue, red, yellow, and green grounds. Before the hand of destruction, in the sixteenth 
 century, wrought such fatal devastation, every sacred edifice throughout England, 
 whether of confined or extended dimensions, teemed with a full and resplendent show of 
 painted glass, all equally excellent, all equally meritorious. York Cathedral is a school 
 for admiration and study ; the collection is complete to all the windows, and, consider- 
 ing the propensity of the many to mutilate and purloin these precious remains, is exceed- 
 ingly perfect. 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 55 
 
 In the eastern aisle of the southern transept is the tomb of 
 Archbishop Walter Grey, who founded this Cathedral, and died in 
 the year 1255. It is a beautiful relic of the thirteenth century, and 
 consists of a canojiy supported by eight pillars, under which is a 
 table monument, bearing the figure of the archbishop in his ponti- 
 fical robes. 
 
 In the same aisle is a monumental table, supported by twelve 
 short pillars, and is said to have been erected in memory of Arch- 
 bishop Godfrey de Ludham, alias Kimton, who died in 1264. 
 
 In the eastern aisle of the northern transept is the monument of 
 Archbishop William de Greenefeld, who died in the year 1315, at 
 Cawood Castle. The high pointed arch of the canopy is sur- 
 mounted by a crocketted gable, terminating in a sculptured finial ; 
 the ends of the monument are supported by buttresses, panelled 
 and pinnacled. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Scrope, at the eastern end of the 
 Cathedral is of stone, covered with a marble slab ; on the sides are 
 sculptured shields, in quatrefoil compartments. The archbishop 
 was beheaded in a field between Bishopsthorp and York, June 8, 
 1405, for high treason ; the first instance of a bishop suffering death, 
 by any form of law, in England. 
 
 The monument of the munificent Archbishop Henry Bowet, 
 who died at Cawood Castle in the year 1423, remains in that state 
 of ruin to which the fire of 1829 reduced it; and the second cala- 
 mity renders the period of its restoration for some time doubtful. 
 It was a particularly fine specimen of the architecture of Henry 
 Vl.’s time, and was similar to that of Cardinal Kemp, his successor, 
 which is at Canterbury ; the monument consisted of a lofty canopy 
 raised on three arches, whence clusters of pinnacles were carried 
 to a great height. The slab which originally covered the tomb 
 was sawn asunder, and used in the pavement.®^ 
 
 Archbishop Thomas Botherham, second founder of Lincoln 
 College, Oxford,^'^ died in the year 1500, at Cawood Castle, and 
 
 This prelate was much commended for his hospitality, which is said to have ex- 
 ceeded that of any of his predecessors. Fourscore tun of claret was yearly consumed in 
 his several palaces, whence, says Drake, it may be inferred, there was beef and ale in 
 abundance. He rebuilt the great hall at Cawood Castle, and the kitchens of the Manor 
 House at Otley, a very ancient seat of the Archbishop of York. 
 
 The original founder of Lincoln College was Richard Flemyng, Bishop of Lin- 
 coln, who was horn at Crofton, near Wakefield, in Y'orkshirc. 
 
66 
 
 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 was interred on the northern side of the chapel of the Blessed 
 Virgin, at the eastern end of the Cathedral ; but at the conflagration 
 in 1829, the monument under which he was buried, and which was 
 erected by himself, was entirely destroyed.” It had been previously 
 robbed of the inscriptions, decorations in brass, and other insignia, 
 and upon the tomb was placed a marble slab, removed from that 
 of Dean William de Langton, who died in 1275, as appeared from 
 the remains of an inscriotion ; but this monument had also been 
 destroyed. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Savage, who died at Cawood 
 Castle in 1507, was erected by his chaplain, Thomas Dalby, Arch- 
 deacon of Kichmond, in the northern aisle of the choir, and was 
 repaired by the dean and chapter in the year 1813. It is an 
 altar tomb, bearing on the sides the arms of Savage impaled with 
 those of the several sees to which he had been preferred in suc- 
 cession, the bishoprics of Bochcster and London, and the archbi- 
 shopric of York. Upon the tomb is the effigy of the prelate in his 
 robes.^^ 
 
 Archbishop John Piers died at Bishopsthorp in the year 1594, 
 and was buried in All Saints Chapel, at the eastern end of the 
 Cathedral. It is a mural monument, and a good specimen of the 
 much-admired Elizabethan style. The enrichments are boldly 
 sculptured, and include the arms of the bishoprics of Rochester 
 and Salisbury, the archbishop having previously held these sees, 
 and is surmounted by his own arms impaling those of York. The 
 monument was afterwards removed from its original situation to 
 make room for that of the Hon. Thomas Wentworth, nephew of 
 the Earl of Strafford. 
 
 The monument of Archbishop Matthew Hutton, who died at 
 Bishopsthorp in 1605, is in the southern aisle of the choir, and is 
 of a more imposing character than that of his predecessor ; the 
 cumbent figure of the archbishop is represented under an arch. 
 
 Of this monument there is an engraving by H. Winkles, in Skelton's Oxford 
 Founders, p. 43. 
 
 Archbishop Savage expended much money in the palaces at Cawood and Scrooby, 
 at which he mostly resided, to enjoy his favourite diversion of hunting, “ a sport,” 
 says Drake, “ he was too passionately fond of to mind the business of his see.” 
 Cardinal Wolsey, his successor in the archbishopric, never once visited York, although 
 he lived at Cawood a whole summer and part of a winter, in “a reasonable good 
 sort.” — Brake. 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 67 
 
 and above the entablature, wbich is supported by Corinthian 
 columns, are the family arms of Hutton impaled with those of the 
 bishopric of Durham, and again with those of the archbishopric 
 of York : in front of an altar tomb, forming the basement of the 
 monument, are three arched recesses, containing kneeling figures 
 of the prelate’s relatives. 
 
 Archbishop Tobias Matthew, an eminent prelate of this see, and 
 a great favourite with Queen Elizabeth and King James, died at 
 Cawood Castle in 1628, and is buried in the Lady Chapel, at the 
 eastern end of the Cathedral, with a long Latin epitaph to his 
 memory. The effigy of the archbishop is represented resting on 
 a marble slab, which is supported by four Corinthian pillars. At 
 the ends of the slab on small pedestals are figures of Temperance 
 and Humility, but above are blazoned the arms and quarterings 
 of his family and those of his wife as also the arms of the see of 
 York impaled with his own, and surmounted by the archiepiscopal 
 mitre. Archbishop Matthew, who was much engaged in imlitics, 
 appears to have been a great wit and a punster, but at the same 
 time of a good disposition, very bountiful and learned, and as a 
 divine, most exemplarily conscientious and indefatigable both in 
 preaching and other duties.^® 
 
 He married Frances Barlow, daughter of the Bishop of Chichester of that name . 
 she died in 1629, and has also a monument in this Cathedral, the inscription upon which 
 is remarkable — “Frances Matthew, first married to Matt. Parker, son of Matthew 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, afterwards to Tohie Matthew, that famous archbishop of 
 the see. She was a woman of exemplary wisdom, gravity, piety, beauty, and indeed 
 all other virtues, not only above her sex, but the times. One exemplary act of hera 
 first devised upon this church, and through it, flowing upon the country, deserves to 
 live as long as the church itself. The library of the deceased archbishop, consisting of 
 about three thousand hooks, she gave entirely to the public use of this church ; a rare 
 example that so great care to advance learning should lodge in a woman’s breast; but 
 it was the less wonder in her, because herself was of kin to so much learning. She 
 was the daughter of William Barlow, Bishop of Chichester, and in King Henry 
 Vlll.th’s time ambassador in Scotland, of the ancient family of the Barlows in Wales. 
 She had four sisters married to four bishops, one to William Whiekham, Bishop of 
 Winchester, another to Overton, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield. A third to 
 Westphaling, Bishop of Hereford, and a fourth to Day, that succeeded Whiekham in 
 Winchester; so that a bishop washer father, an archbishop her father-in-law, she had 
 four bishops her brethren, and an archbishop her husband.’’ 
 
 He kept an account of all the sermons he preached, by which it appears that 
 while Dean of Durham he preached 721 sermons, when Bishop of Durham 550, and 
 when Archbishop of York 721, in all, no less than 1992 sermons. Preferment never 
 once induced him to desist from his duty, and there was scarcely a pulpit in the 
 dioceses of Durham or York, in which he had not preached ; notwithstanding he was 
 Vol. I. - 
 
58 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 At the eastern end of the Cathedral, in the Lady Chapel, is a 
 mural monument in memory of Archbishop Accepted Frewen, 
 who died at the palace of Bishopsthorp, in the year 1664. The 
 effigy of the archbishop is represented lying on an extended base- 
 ment in his canonical robes and cap ; the superstructure of the 
 monument consists of two Corinthian columns supporting an open 
 entablature, beneath which is a shallow arch, containing the epitaph 
 between piles of large books ; above are the arms of the see of 
 York impaled with those of the family of Frewen,” and the whole 
 is surmounted by figures of Faith, Hope, and Charity. 
 
 The mouument of Archbishop Sterne, who died at Bishopsthorp 
 in the year 1683, in St. Stephen’s chapel, at the eastern end of the 
 Cathedral, was erected to his memory, by his grandson Richard 
 Sterne, of Elvington, in this county. The figure of the archbishop, 
 robed and mitred, is represented reclining on a broad basement, 
 inscribed with a long Latin eulogy.” 
 
 In the southern aisle of the choir is a monument in memory of 
 Archbishop John Dolben, who died at the palace of Bishopsthorp 
 in the year 1686. This tomb consists of an elevated basement, 
 upon which is a reclining figure of the deceased prelate in his 
 canonical habit, and with his mitre on his head. Above the effigy 
 are sculptured emblems of his resurrection and crown of glory, 
 within a square compartment, which is surmounted by the arms of 
 Dolben, impaled with those of the see of York.” 
 
 BO industrious, it is rather singular there are none of them in print. The only imputa- 
 tion which remains on his memory is the alienation of York House, in the Strand, 
 London, to George Villiers. the celebrated Duke of Buckingham, for which he is said 
 to have accepted lands in Yorkshire of inferior value. 
 
 37 This archbishop was the son of a puritan, and his baptismal name of Accepted, 
 was perhaps intended as a token of his father’s sanctity ; his brother was named 
 Thankful Frewen. 
 
 38 The first promotion of this prelate to the mastership of Jesus College, Cambridge, 
 is thus mentioned in a private letter to one of his contemporaries. “ One Sterne, a 
 solid scholar, who first summed up the 3600 faults that were in our printed bibles of 
 London, is, by his majesty’s direction to the Bishop of Ely, made master of Jesus.” 
 He afterwards proved a liberal benefactor to that college, as it was by his means that 
 the northern side of the outer court was built. As Archbishop of York he would 
 have deserved enconium, if he had not demised the estate of Hexgrave, in Nottingham- 
 shire, from the see to his own family. His benefactions to Benet College and to the 
 rebuilding of St. Paul’s Cathedral, as well as his other gifts to public and charitable 
 purposes show, that if he was rich he was also liberally inclined. 
 
 38 Archbishop Dolben commenced life as a soldier, and served the king as an 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 69 
 
 Archbishop Thomas Lamplugh, who was descended from an 
 ancient family of that name in Cumberland, died at Bishopsthorp 
 in 1691 ; his monument in the southern aisle of the choir is consi- 
 derably elevated, and exhibits a statue of the mitred prelate in his 
 proper robes, with his crosier in his hand, in an erect position, and 
 is one of the earliest instances of monumental effigies, the size of 
 life, represented standing. 
 
 In the southern aisle of the choir is also a sumptuous monument, 
 in memory of Archbishop John Sharp, who died at Bath, in the 
 year 1713. A black marble sarcophagus raised on a massive plinth, 
 forms the basement of the structure ; upon this is represented a 
 graceful reclining figure of the deceased, in his archiepiscopal 
 vestments, and with his mitre on his head. In the composition and 
 character of this statue, there is no want of dignity, and the sculp- 
 ture is excellent. The elevation of the monument is an architec- 
 tural design of the Corinthian order ; over the figure is a canopy 
 with his epitaph inscribed on pendent drapery, and above the 
 canopy, winged infants supporting the archbishop’s escutcheon : 
 the back of the monument, being of black marble, forms a bold 
 contrast to the white marble of the sculptured parts. The epitaph 
 was written by Bishop Smallbridge, Sharp’s contemporary, and 
 intimate friend, and is full, in every particular, as to the arch- 
 bishop’s promotion and personal merits.^* 
 
 None of the succeeding archbishops of York were buried in the 
 Cathedral. Archbishop Drummond, who died at Bishopsthorp 
 in 1776, was buried by his own desire in a very private manner 
 near the altar of that church ; and Archbishop Markham, who 
 died in London, in 1807, was buried in the cloisters of Westminster 
 Abbey Church. 
 
 In the northern aisle of the choir is an interesting monument, 
 erected to the memory of William of Hatfield, son of King Edward 
 III., who died at the early age of eight years, in 1344.^^ The 
 
 ensign at the siege of this city in 1634 ; at the battle of Marston Moor in the same 
 year he was dangerously wounded in the shoulder by a musket ball. 
 
 ^“Archbishop Sharp was much offended with the licentiousness in which Dean 
 Swift indulged, and when Queen Anne nominated him to a see, the archbishop 
 represented the dean to her majesty as a man whose Christianity was very questionable, 
 which disapprobation impeded his preferment. 
 
 This prince was horn at Hatfleld, near Doncaster, whence he took his surname. 
 Queen Philippa his mother, on this occasion, gave five marks per annum, to the neigh- 
 
60 YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 royal youth is represented habited in a doublet with long sleeves, 
 a mantle with foliated edges, plain hose, and shoes richly orna- 
 mented ; on his head is a chaplet, and a magnificent belt encircles 
 his loins. The head of the prince was formerly supported by two 
 angels, now destroyed, and his feet rest against a lion couchant j 
 the figure lies under a beautiful canopy. 
 
 In the northern transept is a table monument of Purbeck marble, 
 in memory of John Haxby, treasurer of the Cathedral, who died 
 in 1424 ; on this tomb, according to ancient limitations of the 
 church estates, payments of money are still occasionally made. 
 
 Other ancient monuments of distinguished personages in this 
 Cathedral, are those of Bryan Higden, Dean of York, who died in 
 1539 ; James Cotrel, who died in 1595, and Elizabeth Eymes, who 
 died in 1583. 
 
 There are also monuments of Sir Henry Belasyse, and dame 
 Ursula his wife, the daughter of Sir Thomas Fairfax, of Denton; 
 the tomb is of King Charles I.st’s time, but is without date. 
 
 The monument of Charles, first Earl of Carlisle, who died in 
 1684, was erected by Lady Mary Fenwick, his daughter, and 
 exhibits her bust. 
 
 A table monument commemorates Frances, Countess of Cum- 
 berland, daughter of Robert, Earl of Salisbury, who died in 1643. 
 
 A cenotaph, erected at the expense of, and by the public love 
 and esteem of his fellow citizens,” to the memory of Sir George 
 Savile, Bart., M.P. for Yorkshire in five successive parliaments, 
 and who died in 1784 ; the deceased is represented leaning upon 
 a pillar, having a scroll in his hand, inscribed “ the petition of the 
 freeholders of the county of York.” 
 
 A monument in the southern aisle commemorates William 
 Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, K.G., son of the minister of King 
 Charles I., who died in the year 1695. It contains a statue of 
 the earl, who is represented attired in the robes of the order of the 
 garter, with his coronet placed on a cushion at his feet. There is 
 also a monument of Thomas Watson Wentworth, nephew of the 
 
 bouring Abbey of Roehe, and five nobles to the monks there ; which sums, when the 
 prince died, were transferred to the church of York where he was buried, and are to 
 this day paid by the dean and chapter out of the impropriation of the rectory of Hat. 
 field, as appears by the Rolls. Drake's History of York. 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 61 
 
 Earl of Strafford, who died in 1723 ; his effigy is represented in a 
 Eoman dress. 
 
 In the Lady Chapel is a monument, sculptured by W estmacott, 
 in memory of William Burgh, LL.D., who died in the year 1808 ; 
 it consists of an emblematical figure of Faith, sustaining with her 
 right hand a cross, and having her left placed on a book, inscribed 
 on the Holy Trinity the epitaph was written by John Bacon 
 Sawrey Morritt, Esq., of Rokeby. 
 
 In the northern aisle of the choir are preserved two ancient stone 
 coffins, which were discovered under ground at Clifton, on the 
 banks of the Ouse, about a mile northward from the city ; each 
 consists of a single block of stone, measuring seven feet long, two 
 feet one inch wide at bottom, and one foot ten inches deep ; the 
 top also is of one stone. Coffins of this description were most 
 common during the thirteenth century, and were chiefly used for 
 the interment of nobility ; after the fourteenth century they were 
 generally, though gradually superseded by coffins of lead, which 
 last are found to contain bodies embalmed, or preserved in cere- 
 cloths, much oftener than those of stone. The lids of the stone 
 coffins, were generally, raised to the level of, or a few inches above 
 the pavement, and they are often found sculptured with crosses in 
 high relief. The more ancient are ridge shaped, e?i dos d’dne, 
 and form indeed the earliest specimens in this country of the 
 monumental relics of the middle ages. In 1831, the workmen 
 employed in the reparation of the Cathedral, discovered in the 
 same aisle a leaden coffin, supposed to have been that of Arch- 
 bishop Savage, who died in 1507. 
 
 Several illustrious persons have been interred in this Cathedral, 
 but the exact situation of their places of burial is not known. The 
 head of King Edwin is said to have been buried in the church 
 erected by him. Eadbert, King of Northumberland, who died in 
 the year 757, was buried in the porch of the church ; and Tosti, 
 the Anglo-Saxon, Earl of Northumberland, brother of King 
 Harold, who was killed at the battle of Stamford bridge, in 1066, 
 was buried at York, as were also others of note. It must be con- 
 fessed that very few of the monuments in this Cathedral are highly 
 interesting, either as works of art or subjects of antiquity, compared 
 with the grand display afforded by most of the other Cathedrals 
 in the kingdom. 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 62 
 
 The vestries on the southern side of the church contain several 
 curious antiquities, amongst which is a large triangular chest, 
 bound with iron scroll-work, which is supposed to have been used 
 as a repository of the copes and vestments of the priests. In the 
 inner vestry, or council-room, is a large press, in which many 
 evidences and registers of the church are preserved ; but the most 
 curious ancient relic is Ulphus’s horn of ivory ; an inscription in 
 Latin upon the horn, states that Ulphus, prince of the western 
 parts of Deira, originally gave it to the church of St. Peter, toge- 
 ther with all his lands and revenues. Henry Lord Fairfax, at last 
 restored the horn to the church, when it had been lost, or conveyed 
 away. The dean and chapter decorated it anew, A.D. 1675. 
 Camden, in his Britannia, mentions this horn, and quotes an ancient 
 authority for an account of the donation of which it served as a 
 token. The church holds by this horn, several estates of great 
 value, not far eastward from the city of York, and which are still 
 called Terrse Ulphi; the endowment was made about the year 
 1036.« 
 
 In the press are also three silver chalices, taken from the graves 
 of three of the archbishops, and several rings found in the tombs 
 of Archbishops Sewal, Grenefeld, Bowett, Nevil, and Lee;*’ a 
 pastoral staff of silver, given by Katharine of Braganza, queen 
 dowager, to her confessor Smith, when nominated by King James 
 II. to be one of the bishops. 
 
 Here is also an ancient chair, in which it is said several early 
 kings have been crowned. King Richard HI. is reported to have 
 made a progress to York shortly after his accession to the 
 throne, and to have been “ the second tyme crowned by Dr. Rother- 
 ham, Archbishop of Yorke, in the cathedral church, with great 
 solemnity,” when “ his sonne alsoe was invested in the principallitye 
 of Wales.”^* A canopy of gold tissue was formerly shewn, which 
 
 A Tract on the subject of this horn is printed in the first volume of the 
 Archoeologia. 
 
 ^3 The rings of the two first bishops, are rubies set in gold ; Nevil’ s, is a sap- 
 phire set in gold; Bowett’ s, a composition of gold, with a motto, l^onour anh Hop; 
 Lee’s, glass set in copper gilt. 
 
 ** Sir George Buc. In Hall’s Chronicle, is also a particular account of the cere- 
 mony. “ Bichard was received at York with great pomp and triumph by the citizens ; 
 and on the day of the coronation, September 8, 1483, the elergy of the church in their 
 richest copes went about the streets in procession, followed by the King with his crown 
 and sceptre, accompanied with a great number of the nobility of the realm. Then fol- 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 63 
 
 was carried over King James when he visited York, also two 
 small coronets of silver gilt, used on the same occasion. Drake 
 says, “on the 10th of August, 1617, came King James to York, 
 in his progress towards Scotland, accompanied by many earls, 
 barons, knights, and esquires, both Scotch and English. The 
 sheriffs of the city, attended by one hundred young citizens, on 
 horsebaek, met the king on Tadcaster bridge, and carried their 
 white rods before him till he came to Micklegate Bar. Here the 
 lord mayor, aldermen, and twenty-four, with many other citizens 
 did welcome his majesty to the city of York. The lord mayor on 
 his knees presented the sword with the keys of all the gates and 
 posterns, and likewise presented a standing cup, with a cover of 
 silver double gilt, a purse with a hundred double sovereigns in it, 
 and made a worthy speech at the delivery of each particular to 
 the king. After him. Sergeant Hutton, recorder of the city, made 
 a long oration, which ended, the king delivered the city’s sword 
 to the Earl of Cumberland, chief captain of the city, who carried 
 it, and the lord mayor the mace, before his majesty. On the top 
 of the Ouse bridge another speech was made to the king by Sands 
 Percvine, a London poet, concerning the cutting of the river, and 
 making it more navigable. Thence his majesty rode to the min- 
 ster, where he heard divine service, and so to the manor, where 
 he kept his court. The next day he dined with Lord Sheffield, 
 lord president, at Sir George Young’s house, in the minster yard ; 
 after dinner and banquet, the king made eight knights, walked 
 into the Cathedral, viewed the chapter-house and church, which 
 he much commended for its elegant workmanship. The day after, 
 his majesty rode in his coach through the city to Bishopsthorp, 
 where he dined with Toby Matthew, the archbishop. On the 
 13th, being Sunday, his majesty went to the Cathedral, where the 
 archbishop preached a learned sermon before him ; after which, 
 
 lowed Queen Anne, crowned likewise, leading in ker left hand Prince Edward her son, 
 having on his head a demy crown. In this manner they went to the Cathedral, where 
 Archbishop Rotherham set the crown on Richard’s head in the chapter-house. 'The 
 lords spiritual and temporal of the realm were present on this solemn occasion, and 
 indeed it was a day of great state, there being then three princes in York wearing 
 crowns; the King, the Queen, and Prince of Wales. Now followed tilts and tourna- 
 ments, masques, revels, and stage-plays, with other triumphant sports, with feasting to 
 the uttermost prodigality.” Brake’s Mistory and Antiquities of the City of York, 
 
YORK CATHEDRAL. 
 
 64 
 
 he touched about seventy persons for the king’s evil. This dav 
 he dined with the lord mayor, with his whole court ; after dinner, 
 he knighted Sir Robert Askwith, the lord mayor, and Sir Richard 
 Hutton, the recorder. On Monday, the king rode to Sheriff 
 Hutton Park; and on Tuesday, Dr. Hodgson, chancellor of the 
 church, and chaplain to his majesty, preached before him at the 
 manor. After sermon, the king took coach in the manor-yard, 
 when the lord mayor, aldermen, and sheriffs, took their leaves of 
 his majesty, who went that night to Ripon.”*® 
 
 The Cathedral Library is in a large handsome room, situated 
 on the northern side of the church, and was formerly a chapel to 
 the archiepiscopal palace. The floor is of oak, and a light gallery 
 of the same material affords access to the upper shelves : the 
 western window of painted glass exhibits the armorial bearings of 
 the dignitaries of this Cathedral, having in the centre the arms of 
 his late Majesty, William IV. as Duke of Clarence ; the other 
 windows are of ground glass. The foundation of the present 
 library was the gift of Archbishop Matthew, by his widow Frances 
 Matthew. The next addition of any considerable amount was 
 from Lord Fairfax; and Archbishop Dolben gave to the library 
 by his widow and his son Gilbert Dolben, a present of books in 
 the year 1686, consisting of nearly 400 volumes. The collection 
 of the Rev. Marmaduke Fothergill, S. T. P. vicar of Kipwith, in 
 the East Riding of this county, was added to the library some 
 time after his death, which took place in the year 1731. Besides 
 these, other presents, of less amount, in books and in money for 
 the purchase of books, have been made at different times since the 
 foundation of the library, which now contains 108 manuscripts,"'® 
 and in printed books, as nearly as at present can be ascertained, 
 about 6000 volumes. 
 
 Drake’s History, page 133. 
 
 Amongst these is a manuscript version of the New Testament, by "Wicliffe, 
 which had formerly been Queen Elizabeth’s, and containing her majesty’s ovn 
 autograph. 
 

 
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ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The see of London was established by Augustine of Canterbury, 
 when the Anglo-Saxons first embraced Christianity, and a church 
 was founded on the site of the present edifice by King Ethelbert, 
 who dedicated it to St. Paul the Apostle: the structure was after- 
 wards enlarged by St. Erkenwald, Bishop of London, but the 
 Cathedral, together with great part of the city, was destroyed by 
 an accidental fire in the year 1083. 
 
 Maurice, Bishop of London, in the year 1086, refounded the 
 Cathedral, and built the nave ; this part of the church is said 
 to have been the most magnificent work of the kind in England. 
 The transepts were carried on by his successor in the see. Bishop 
 Richard de Beaumes, in 1120, but were completed by Bishop 
 Richard Fitz-Nele, about the year 1199. The choir was begun to 
 be erected by Bishop William de Saint Maria, in 1220, and by the 
 contributions of his successor. Bishop Eustace de Fauconberg, it 
 was finished, together with the chapter-house. Bishop Henry 
 Wingham originally erected the cloisters in the year 1260, on the 
 northern side of the church; and the lady chapel was chiefly built in 
 the year 1310, during the prelacy of Bishop Ralph Baldock ; near 
 the high altar was a celebrated shrine of St. Erkenwald, the prin- 
 cipal resort of the pious.^ 
 
 The Cathedral was anciently encompassed by a wall, which ex- 
 tended from the north-eastern corner of Ave Maria Lane, eastward 
 along Paternoster Row to the the end of Old Change, in Cheapside, 
 
 * In dimensions the length of the nave of the Cathedral, familiarly termed 
 Paul’s "Walk in the old plays, was 290 feet, and the breadth 120 feet. The 
 height of the vaulting of the western part of the ehurch was 102 feet, and of 
 the eastern part 188 feet. The Cathedral was remarkable for its beautiful spire, 
 which surmounted the central tower, the highest in Europe, and supposed to be 
 coeval with the tower. It was the first spire built in England, but the precise period 
 of its erection is not known. The height of the tower was 260 feet, and of the 
 spire, an octagonal timber frame covered with lead, 274 feet, making a total height 
 of 534 feet. The spire was burned down by lightning in the year 1561, and 
 was never rebuilt. The whole space occupied by the Cathedral was three acres 
 and a half, one rood and a half, and six perches, according to Dugdale’s History of 
 St. Paul’s. 
 
 VOL. I 
 
 K 
 
66 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 whence it ran southward to Carter Lane, Creed Lane, Ludgate 
 Street on the west. In the Cathedral wall were six gate- 
 houses, the principal of which stood in Ludgate Street, near 
 the end of Creed Lane, opening upon the western front of the 
 Cathedral : the second was in Paternoster Eow, at St. Paul’s Alley ; 
 and the third at Canon Alley the fourth, called the little gate, 
 was an entrance from Cheapside ; the fifth, or St. Austin’s gate, 
 led from Watling Street into the Cathedral precinct; and the 
 sixth gate-house fronted the southern porch of the church, near 
 Paul’s Chain. 
 
 In the middle of the churchyard, within the northern side of 
 the close stood a celebrated pulpit cross, at which sermons were 
 preached weekly, and where the folkmote, or general convention of 
 citizens was formerly held. Paul’s Cross was rebuilt by Bishop 
 Kemp in 1449, but was destroyed by the order of Parliament for 
 the demolition of all Crosses in the year 1643. 
 
 The ancient palace of the bishops of London stood at the north- 
 western corner of the churchyard,^ and contiguous to it on the east 
 was Pardon Church Haw, where Gilbert Becket founded a chapel 
 in the reign of Stephen ; this chapel was rebuilt in the time of King 
 Henry V,,by Thomas Moore, dean of St. Paul’s, who also rebuilt 
 the cloisters.* 
 
 On the eastern side of the churchyard was a campanile, or 
 bell tower, containing the J esus bells, four great bells belonging 
 
 * Near tiis spot, against one of the houses in Pannier Alley, on the opposite side of 
 Paternoster Eow, is a stone bearing an inscription. 
 
 "Wiien you have sought the city round, 
 
 Yet still this is the highest ground. 
 
 August 27, 1G88. 
 
 ’ Other palaces of bishops of London were Bishop’s Stortford, Herts. ; Bishop’s 
 "Wiekham, Essex; Bishop’s Hall, Stepney; Bishop’s Hall, Chelmsford; Fulham, in 
 Middlesex; and London House, in Aldersgate Street — the last was purchased for their 
 residence in the reign of James I. 
 
 * The cloisters of old St. Paul’s environed what was usually called Pardon church- 
 yard, and were only 91 feet square in extent. On the walls of this enclosure the 
 Dance of Death was painted, accompanied by verses describing the several charac- 
 ters from the emperor to the beggar. The cloisters are said to have been of two 
 stories in height, but were destroyed in the year 1549, at the very commencement of 
 the Eeformation, by the Protector, the Duke of Somerset, who used the materials in 
 the erection of his house in the Strand. Cloisters and chapter-house form no part of 
 the present arrangement of St. Paul’s Cathedral ; the first was more particularly 
 adapted to conventual life. 
 
ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 67 
 
 to Jesus chapel, in St. Faith’s church.* Fronting the eastern end 
 of the Cathedral is St. Paul’s School, founded in the year 1509, by 
 Dr. John Colet, dean of St. Paul’s; but rebuilt in 1670, and 
 again in the year 1824. 
 
 On the anniversary of the Conversion of St. Paul,® held in the 
 Cathedral, a fat buck was annually received with great formality 
 at the entrance of the choir, by the canons in their sacerdotal vest- 
 ments, and with chaplets of flowers on their heads. Camden, who 
 was an eye-witness of this solemnity, says, that the antlers of the 
 buck were carried on a pike in procession round the church, with 
 horns blowing, etc. On the buck being offered at the high altar, a 
 shilling was paid by the dean and chapter as a fee to the keepers 
 who brought it, which concluded the ceremony. This custom 
 originated in the reign of Edward I., by grant from Sir William le 
 Baud, in 1274. 
 
 King James I. appointed Sunday, 26th of March, 1620, to be 
 present at divine service in the Cathedral : his majesty went on 
 horseback, attended by the principal nobility and officers of the 
 court. The king was met by the lord mayor, aldermen, and livery, 
 in their formalities, at the western porch, and upon entering the 
 church the king kneeled near the brazen pillar and prayed : then 
 his majesty was received under a canopy supported by the dean and 
 residentiaries, the prebendaries and dignitaries, with the whole 
 company of singing men advancing before him to the choir, which 
 on this occasion was hung with rich tapestry. Here the king 
 heard an anthem, and then proceeded to Paul’s Cross, where the 
 Bishop of London preached a sermon from this text given him by 
 
 * The church of Saint Faith-the-Virgin was demolished about the year 1256, to 
 enlarge the Cathedral, when a place of worship was granted to the parishioners in the 
 eastern part of the crypt of St. Paul’s, under the choir, where divine service continued 
 to be performed until the fire of London. The parish is now united to St. Austin’s, in 
 "Watling Street, which is in the patronage of the dean and chapter. Part of the church- 
 yard belonging to St. Faith’s parish was taken to enlarge the street at the eastern end 
 of the Cathedral, and the remainder, within the enclosure of St. Paul’s churchyard, 
 serves as a burial place for the parishioners of St. Faith’s. 
 
 ® It was on the 25th of J anuary, the first festival of an Apostle in the year, and 
 commemorated in a rhyming prognostic, denoting the good or ill fortune of the forth- 
 coming year. 
 
 If St. Paul’s day be fair and clear. 
 
 It does betide a happy year ; 
 
 But if it chance to snow or rain. 
 
 Then will be dear all kinds of grain. 
 
68 
 
 ST. Paul’s cathedbal. 
 
 his majesty, 13th and 14th verses of the 102nd Psalm ; the sermon 
 was afterwards circulated with considerable effect in the promotion 
 of public zeal through the whole kingdom. After divine service 
 was ended, the king and the whole court were entertained at the 
 bishop’s palace. At the same time it was agreed to issue a com- 
 mission under the great seal to raise money for carrying the repairs 
 of the church into execution. Inigo Jones was employed afterwards 
 to erect a portico, of the Corinthian order, at the western end of 
 the Cathedral. 
 
 The monuments of the following bishops of London remained 
 in the church when Dugdale wrote his History of St. Paul’s. St. 
 Erkenw'ald, ob. 695 ; his shrine was restored with great splendour 
 in 1339. William the Norman, bishop of London, ob. 1070. Bishop 
 Roger Niger, ob. 1241. Bishop RichardNewport,ob. 1318. Bishop 
 John Chishull, ob. 1279. Bishop John Elmar, ob. 1594. Bishop 
 Richard Fletcher, ob. 1596. Bishop Eustace de Eauconberg, ob. 
 1228. Bishop Henry Wingham, ob. 1261. Bishop Ralph Baldock, 
 ob. 1313. Bishop Hobert Braybrooke, ob. 1404. Bishop John 
 Stokesly, ob. 1539. Bishop John King, ob. 1621. Bishop Thomas 
 Kemp, ob. 1489. Bishop Richard Vaughan, ob. 1607. Bishop 
 Richard Fitz-James, ob. 1521. Bishop Thomas Ravis, ob. 1609. 
 Most of the Anglo-Saxon bishops of London, besides those already 
 mentioned, Avere also interred in this church.’ 
 
 The great fire of London in the year 1666 destroyed the chief 
 part of the building, and irreparably damaged the remainder. The 
 vast magnitude of the work, and the contemplation of the great ex- 
 pense requisite for building a new Cathedral, occasioned a lapse of 
 some years, as well as a loss of considerable labour and materials, 
 before it was finally determined that all attempts at reparation were 
 hopeless. A commission was appointed in November, 1673, con- 
 sisting of several peers, spiritual and temporal, together with other- 
 persons of rank, having authority to superintend the plans for 
 
 ’ The other remarkable monuments in the old church which were destioyed by the 
 fire, were those of Henry Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, who died in 1312. Sir John Beau- 
 champ, one of the founders of the order of the Garter, who died in 1360. Sir Simon 
 Burley, K.G., ob. 1388. John of Ghent, Duke of Lancaster, who died in 1399. Dean 
 Culct, ob. 1519. William, Earl of Pembroke, ob. 1551. Sir Nicholas Bacon, ob. 1579. 
 Sir Philip Sidney, ob. 1586. Sir Christopher Hatton, K.G., ob. 1591. Sir Francis Wal- 
 singham, ob. 1590 ; and that of Dr. Donne, ob. 1631. Sir Anthony Vandyck, the painter, 
 who died in 1641, was also buried in old St. Paul’s. 
 
ST. Paul’s cathedral. 69 
 
 rebuilding the Cathedral ; and a design having been approved by 
 the king, his majesty issued a warrant on the 1st of May, 1675, for 
 the commencement of the works. The removal of the ruins of the 
 old Cathedral was not accomplished without difficulty, and repeated 
 efforts were found necessary to level the w'alls of the venerable 
 edifice. The foundation commenced at the western end, was car- 
 ried on eastward, and the first stone was laid by Sir Christopher 
 Wren on the 21st of June, 1675. In ten years the walls of the 
 choir and aisles were finished, together with the northern and 
 southern porticoes, and the great piers of the dome were brought I 
 
 to the same height.® 
 
 The choir of the church was first opened for divine service on 
 occasion of the Thanksgiving for the Peace of Ryswick, 2nd De- 
 cember, 1697, concluded in that year between the allied powers and 
 France ; service was first performed in the morning prayer chapel, 
 on the southern side of the church, on the 1st February, 1699; 
 and in 1710 the highest and last stone, on the top of the lantern, ) 
 
 was laid by Christopher Wren, son of the architect, in the presence j 
 
 of Mr. Strong, principal mason, and others who had been em- ! 
 
 ployed in the execution of the work. Thus the Cathedral Church 
 was completed in the period of five and thirty years, under the 
 superintendence of one architect, under the direction of one prin- 
 cipal mason, and during the occupation of the see of London by 
 one bishop : it may also be mentioned that it remains without 
 alteration or addition since its original erection. 
 
 Dr. Henry Compton, son of the second Earl of Northampton of 
 that name, was appointed Bishop of London by King Charles II. 
 in 1675.® After King James ascended the throne, he was, however, 
 
 ® From an account of St. Paul’s Church printed in the year 1685, by John 
 Tillison, clerk of the works, it appears that the general depth of the foundation below 
 the surface of the ground is 22 feet, and in many places 35 feet; that the large vaults 
 below the church are 18 feet 6 inches from the ground to the crown of the arch, and 
 that each of the great piers sustaining the dome stands upon 1360 feet of ground super- 
 ficial measure, and each lesser one upon 380 feet. The whole space occupied by the piers 
 and covered by the dome contains half an acre, half a quarter of an acre, and almost four 
 perches. 
 
 ® In the same year this bishop was made dean of the Chapel Royal, and the king 
 committed to his care the education of his two nieces, the princesses Mary and Anne ; 
 they were both confirmed by him in 1676, and both likewise married by him, Mary 
 to William, Prince of Orange, in 1677, and Anne to George, Prince of Denmark, 
 in 1683. 
 
70 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 suspended from the execution of his episcopal office, during his 
 majesty’s pleasure, when the bishops of Durham, Peterborough, 
 and Rochester, were appointed commissioners to exercise ecclesi- 
 astical jurisdiction within the diocese of London. Bishop Compton 
 was restored in 1688, and was chosen by King William to perform 
 the ceremony of his and Queen Mary’s coronation in 1689. He 
 died at Fulham in 1713, at the age of eighty-one, and was buried 
 in the churchyard there. 
 
 St. Paul’s Cathedral, one of the most conspicuous objects of 
 the British capital, stands in the very centre and most elevated part 
 of the city of London, having Ludgate Hill on the west. Cheap- 
 side on the east, and St. Martin’s-le-Grand on the north. The 
 edifice is entirely built of fine Portland stone,’® and on the plan of 
 the Latin Cross, a form which approaches to perfection, expands 
 easily to the eye of the spectator, and exhibits its beautiful 
 combination at one view. The whole length of the church with 
 its portico is 500 feet, the width of the western front with the 
 towers is 180 feet, and the length of the transept within the 
 doors of the porticoes is 250 feet ; the circumference' of the 
 building being 2292 feet. At the intersection of the nave and 
 transept rises a magnificent dome, 145 feet in diameter, from the 
 top of which springs a lantern enriched with columns, and sur- 
 mounted by a gilded ball and cross, the croix aveline. At the 
 western end of the church are projections northward and south- 
 ward, answering the purposes of a morning chapel and consistory 
 court, an expedient for giving more importance to the western 
 front. There are also, at the internal angles of the cross, on the 
 plan, small square bastion-like adjuncts, the real use of which is to 
 strengthen the piers of the dome, but which are made serviceable, 
 internally, as vestries and a staircase. The nave and choir are 
 separated by the area over which the cupola rises ; from this area 
 a transept diverges to the north and south, extending each way one 
 severy, or arch, in length. The choir is terminated eastward on 
 
 The Portland stone which has been used in many of the magnificent buildings of 
 the kingdom, was first brought into repute in the reign of James I., and was employed 
 in the construction of the Banquetting House, part of an intended new palace at White- 
 hall. After the fire of London this stone was used by Sir Christopher Wren in rebuild- 
 ing almost every edifice of magnitude in the metropolis. 
 
S? FAUJIL S 
 
 CATM'illD-mAIL 
 
 REFERENCE TO THE PUN 
 A Ihe Nave 
 
 B North Vestihule ) toJiislej 
 C Soiiih J)9 \ot' the Nave 
 D WestFortio) 
 
 E Bell Tower 
 F Vesabule to the Nave 
 G Geometrical Suur Case 
 H Transept 
 1 NW J}? 
 
 K Lord Mayors Vestry 
 h Prebendarys B ° 
 
 M St/ur Case to Dome <4- Galleries 
 N Deans Vestry 
 O Choir 
 
 P N&S.Aules of' D ^ 
 
 Q Altar 
 R TThmc 
 
 • S North Transept Sc PortLCO 
 T South J)? D^ 
 
 Y Reading Desk 
 W TuJpit 
 
 REFERENCE TO THE MONUMENTS 
 
 1 Sam^Johnsori Bacon 1795 
 
 2 J.Boward FRS. Bacon- 1795 
 
 .3 S^WJonrs Kn^ Bacori 1799 
 
 4 HRiuidle Bwqess Esq. Bonks 1802 
 
 5 CaptFmdhner Rossi ISOS 
 
 *£• Copl.R W Miller FLiurrnan 
 
 6 CaptMosse Sc Rion Rossi 1805 
 
 7 Miy Gen.Tho D Hildas Bacon 1S05 
 
 6 CaptG.Blagdan'Westcatt Banks 1805 
 
 9 S^'RalphAnercroniMe Nestmacotf 18 09 
 
 10 Earl Bow e FlojmanlSll 
 
 11 Marquis Com^allii Rossi 1811 
 
 Copt Cook Westjnarott 
 
 12 I'aptGeo.Durf Bacon 
 
 Lord. Vucaunt Nelson Flaxrrian 
 
 IZ S^JoshiucRcynolds Bacon. 
 
 . 180 Feet 
 
ST. PAUL*S CATHEDRAL. 71 
 
 the plan by a semicircular apsis or tribune, which is equal in diameter 
 to the width of the choir. 
 
 The architectural elevation of this grand edifice consists 
 throughout of two orders ; the lower one Corinthian, the upper 
 Composite. In both stories, excepting at the northern and 
 southern entrances, which are enriched with semicircular porticoes, 
 and on the western front, the whole of the entablatures rest on 
 coupled pilasters ; between these, in the lower order, a range of 
 semicircular headed windows is introduced, and in the order above, 
 the corresponding spaces are occupied by dressed niches, on pedes- 
 tals pierced with openings, which give light to passages over the 
 aisles. The upper order of architecture is merely a screen to hide 
 buttresses which are carried across from the outer walls to resist 
 the thrust of the great vaulting. 
 
 One of the principal objections made by architectural critics is, 
 that the body of the church is divided into two equal orders, 
 instead of an attic only being added, as in the instance of the church 
 of St. Peter’s at Rome, also, that the surface of the building is 
 crowded with festoons, and broken into minute rustic to the very 
 summit. It is known that the original design which Sir Christopher 
 "Wren gave for the Cathedral of St. Paul, was more approved by 
 himself than that adopted in the present building, and it had 
 apparently some points of superiority ; the whole fabric in the first 
 design consisted of one order only, instead of an equal division 
 into two, and the grand portico projected with a space and eleva- 
 tion not unequal to that of the Pantheon at Rome." An architect 
 of eminence, after a comparison of St. Paul’s with the churches of 
 St. Peter, St. Mary, at Florence, and that of St. Genevieve, or the 
 Pantheon, at Paris, three of the largest modern churches of Europe, 
 admits that St. Paul’s ranks high in point of constructive merit; but 
 it appears there is least waste of interior effect in St. Mary’s, a'i 
 Florence, and that St. Paul’s and the church of St. Genevieve, are 
 very far from being economical in this view of their merits.** The 
 
 n The dome of the intended church did not rise from a peristyle as at present, 
 but was supported by buttresses. The plan and elevation have been published, and 
 the model is exhibited in the Cathedral. 
 
 *2 Account of St. Paul’s Cathedral, by Joseph Gwllt, architect, who is the 
 author, also, of “ A Comparative View of the Magnitude of the Four principal Modern 
 Churches in Europe and besides extensive information on architecture, possesses a 
 highly cultivated taste. 
 
73 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 greatest defeet in the architecture of St. Paul’s Cathedral, says the 
 same intelligent critic, arises from the multiplicity of breaks and 
 incongruous forms in every part; hence a want of breadth and 
 repose throughout, the cupola and its peristyle only excepted, in 
 which a very opposite practice has produced the most delightful 
 result. Another defect is the almost universal absence of even the 
 semblance of tie and connexion which the want of continuous lines 
 of entablature produces; pediments with the horizontal corona 
 omitted, besides many minor abuses, such as deficiency of archi- 
 traves, fritter in the ornament, etc. In short, all the details appear 
 to have been copied from the worst examples of the worst Italian 
 and French masters. 
 
 AVith respect to the general division of the body of the building 
 into two orders of architecture, it is stated in the Parentalia, that 
 Sir Christopher Wren was obliged to yield to circumstances, as 
 the Portland quaries would not afford stones of the required 
 dimensions but Mr. Gwilt says these excuses are unsatisfactory, 
 it would have been far better to have had the columns in many 
 pieces, and even with vertical joints, than to have placed one por- 
 tico over another on the western front. 
 
 The lower division of the western portico is composed of twelve 
 coupled columns of the Corinthian order, on a basement formed 
 by a double flight of steps of black marble, and the upper of only 
 eight columns supporting an entablature and pediment, the 
 tympan of which is a bas-relief, representing the Conversion of 
 St. Paul, the patron Saint of the church,** sculptured by Francis 
 Bird.*® On the apex of the pediment is a colossal statute of St. 
 Paul, and at the extremities are figures of St. Peter and St. James. 
 On the sides of the portico are towers, each of which are surmounted 
 
 Parentalia, or Memoirs of the Family of the Wrens, hut chiefly of Sir Christopher 
 Wren. London, 1750. 
 
 The Conversion forms the subject of one of the oldest pictures in the National 
 Gallery, a production of the Ferrarese school, obtained from the Aldobrandini collection. 
 
 *5 This artist was employed by Sir Christopher Wren in the sculptural enrich- 
 ment of the Cathedral; for the pediment, 64 feet by 17, and consisting of eight 
 figures, of which six are equestrian, he received £650, for the reliefs under the 
 western portico, the acts of St. Paul, he received £300, and £75 each for the panels. 
 Lord Orford says, that “ the many public works by his hand are not good testimonies 
 in his favour but it must be admitted that he succeeded well in monumental figures ; 
 that of Dr. Busby, in Westminster Abbey, by the same master, is suflicient to prove 
 his ability. 
 

S"-; FAWKiS, CATMIEBMAIL, 
 
 THE WESTERN FR.ON’T 
 
 
 
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ST. Paul’s cathedkal. 
 
 73 
 
 by an enriched steeple of two orders, in light pierced work, covered 
 with a dome formed by curves of contrary flexure, and terminated 
 by a majestic pine-cone 222 feet from the ground. At the angles 
 of these towers, on the western front, are colossal statues of the 
 Evangelists with their attributes. In the south-western tower is 
 the clock, and the great bell on which it strikes.'® The diameter 
 of this bell is about 10 feet on it are the words, “ Richard Phelps 
 made me, 1716.” 
 
 In the centre of the area before the western front of the Ca- 
 thedral is a statue of Queen Anne, sculptured by Bird, in 1712 ; 
 it stands on a circular pedestal, having four pilasters at equal 
 distances, supported by trusses, on which are seated four allego- 
 rical female figures, representing England, Erance, Ireland, and 
 America. 
 
 The fronts of the northern and southern transepts are terminated 
 upwards by pediments, over coupled pilasters at the quoins, and 
 two single pilasters in the intermediate space : each front is sur- 
 mounted by five colossal statues of apostles. On the front of each 
 transept is also a grand semicircular Corinthian portico, the south- 
 ern raised on a semicircular terrace, having, on each side, piers of 
 entrance surmounted by rich vases, ornamented with arabesque 
 work, which are placed on elegant circular pedestals, enriched 
 with cherubim heads, and festoons of fruit and flowers. It has 
 been justly observed of these porticoes, that they are not inferior 
 in beauty to the dome itself; they are objects equally admirable 
 whether considered separately or in connexion with the building 
 which they adorn, and diversify by affording a contrast of curved 
 with the straight lines of the architecture, and of insulated columns 
 with engaged pilasters. 
 
 The clock 13 of great magnitude, and is wound up daily ; the outward dial, 18 feet 
 10 inches in diameter, is regulated by a smaller one withinside. The length of the 
 minute hand is 8 feet, and its weight 751bs. ; the length of the hour hand is 5 feet 5 
 inches, and its weight 441bs. ; the length of the hour figures is 2 feet 2^ inches. It 
 appears that the art of making large clocks is every day retrograding, and exhibits a 
 singular instance of a branch of mechanical science, and one of very great importance, 
 in which we are infinitely surpassed by the French, amongst whom the art of turret 
 clock making, as an object worthy of public attention, is carried to an unrivalled degree 
 of perfection. — Vulliamy's Considerations on the Subject of Public Clocks. 4to, 1828. 
 
 u Its weight, which is not to be compared with the great bells of Oxford or Exeter, 
 is generally stated at 4^ tons, but is also said to be only 3 tons 15 cwt., or 84001bs. 
 VOL. I. L 
 
74 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 The walls of the nave and choir are decorated with two stories, 
 of coupled pilasters, arranged at regular distances, the lower range 
 being of the Corinthian, and the upper of the composite order; the 
 intervals between the Corinthian pilasters are occupied by large 
 windows, and those between the composite pilasters, by niches ; the 
 entire summit of the side walls is crowned by a regular balustrade. 
 The projecting semicircle, which terminates the eastern end, is 
 more highly enriched, and appears to have been completed in the 
 reign of William III., as the royal initials are sculptured beneath 
 the eastern window. Over the choir at the extreme eastern end 
 is an ornamented attic, which breaks the line of balustrade. 
 
 The dome, the most remarkable and magnificent feature in the 
 building, is generally spoken of in terms of unqualified admiration; 
 objections, it is true, have been raised to the columns of the peri- 
 style, for their excess in height, over that of either of the orders 
 below, and the objections are not groundless; but none, says Mr. 
 Gwilt, can lament this violation of rigid propriety. The same gen- 
 tleman affirms, that for dignity and elegance no church in Europe 
 affords an example worthy of comparison with the cupola of Paul’s. 
 The peristyle stands on an immense circular basement, rising about 
 twenty feet above the roof of the church, and supported on the 
 piers and great arches of the central area : the columns, thirty-two 
 in number, are of a composite order, every fourth intercolumniation 
 being filled with masonry, but so disposed as to include an orna- 
 mental niche; by which arrangement the buttresses of the cupola are 
 judiciously concealed, and converted into a decoration of a beautiful 
 character. The colonnade is crowned with a complete entablature 
 and balustrade, which forms an entire circle, connecting all the 
 parts in one grand and harmonious whole. Above the colonnade, 
 but not resting upon it, rises an attic, the detail of which is simple 
 and appropriate, and whence springs the exterior dome of a very 
 bold and graceful contour ; it is covered with lead and ribbed at 
 regular intervals. At its summit is another gallery of gilded iron 
 work, from the centre of which rises a stone lantern enriched with 
 columns and crowned by a ball and cross.'® The view of the city 
 
 In 1826 a new ball and cross were placed on the lantern in lieu of the originals' 
 which had become so decayed as to render this measure necessary. 
 


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ST. Paul’s cathedeal. 75 
 
 of London from the stone gallery, round the dome, over the colon- 
 nade, is very fine, but by no means equals the extensive prospect 
 obtained at the superior elevation of the golden gallery at the apex 
 of the dome round the lantern. The outward diameter of the dome 
 is 145 feet, the inward diameter of the same is 108 feet.*® The 
 entire height from the ground to the top of the cross is 340 feet. 
 
 The principal entrance to the crypt is by a flight of steps in the 
 south-eastern angle of the great transept: in this, the basement 
 story, vast piers and arches sustain the superstructure, the space 
 being formed into three avenues corresponding with those of the 
 nave, transept, and choir above. In the very centre of the crypt 
 repose the remains of Admiral Lord Nelson, who fell at the battle 
 of Trafalgar in the year 1 805. The colours of his own ship, the 
 Victory, were deposited in the same grave, which is covered with 
 an altar tomb of granite, supporting a large square sarcophagus of 
 black and dark coloured marbles. In the crypt is also the grave 
 of the architect, situated under the southern aisle of the choir. 
 
 The nave and choir of the Cathedral are each flanked by three 
 arches springing from piers, which are strengthened as well as 
 decorated on their inner faces by pilasters of the Corinthian order, 
 crowned by an entablature. Over this order of architecture rises 
 a tall attic, the pilasters of which form abutment piers for the 
 springing of the semicircular arches of the vaulting. The vaulting 
 of this part of the church is light, elegant, and very judiciously 
 constructed ; each division forms a low dome, supported by four 
 spandrilsj the face of each sphere being encircled by an enriched 
 course of foliage. In the upright plane space on the walls a 
 clerestory is introduced over the attic ; the aisles, which are low in 
 comparison with the nave, are vaulted from the small pilasters, and 
 terminated in a manner similar to that of the vaulting of the nave 
 and choir. At the western termination of the nave is a small tran- 
 sept, which on the south is occupied as a morning prayer chapel, 
 and on the north as a consistory, or court of the chancellor of the 
 diocese ; these are divided from the aisles by screens of ornamental 
 
 The diameter of the inside of the Pantheon at Eome is about 149 feet English 
 measure, exclusive of the walls, which are about 18 feet thick, so that the diameter of 
 the whole circle is about 185 feet; the roof of this ancient temple, now covered with 
 lead, was formerly covered with plates of gilded brass. 
 
76 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 carved work. In the story above the consistory court is the Cathe- 
 dral library : over the chimney-piece is a portrait of Dr. Henry 
 Compton, Bishop of London, painted by Sir James Thornhill ; he 
 is represented with a plan of the Cathedral in his hand ; this pre- 
 late presented the whole of his books to the library. At the 
 opposite extremity of the transept, and exactly corresponding in 
 situation and dimension with the library, is another apartment, in 
 which is preserved the model which was made under the direction 
 of Sir Christopher Wren, and valued by him as the most perfect of 
 all the designs he made for the Cathedral. The central area under 
 the cupola is circumscribed by eight large piers, equal in size, but 
 not equi- distant. The four larger openings occur in the spaces 
 where the nave, choir, and transept diverge from the great circle, 
 the lesser ones between them. These latter are surmounted by 
 arches which spring from the architrave of the main order, but by 
 extending the springing points, above, in the attic so as to break 
 over the re-entering angular pilaster below, such an increase of 
 opening is acquired in the attic, that the eight arches which receive 
 the cantilever cornice of the whispering gallery are all equal.'^® 
 Above the cornice a tall pedestal, or dado, receives the order 
 immediately under the dome ; its periphery is divided into eight 
 portions, of three intercolumnlations each, pierced for windows; 
 each of these divisions being separated from that adjoining it by 
 a solid pier, one intercolumniation wide, decorated with a niche. 
 The piers so formed connect the wall of the inner order with 
 the external peristyle, and thus serve as counterforts to resist the 
 thrust of the inner brick cupola, as well as that of the conical wall 
 Avhich carries the lantern. 
 
 The ascent to the whispering gallery, as it is universally called* 
 is by a circular staircase, constructed within the north-western 
 projection of the great transept. This gallery, composed of richly- 
 ornamented iron-work, encircles the drum of the dome, and ex- 
 tends to the extreme edge of the cornice. The staircase contracts 
 on approaching the gallery to afford room for various passages, 
 through the apertures of which the immense buttresses of the 
 dome may be seen. 
 
 The mitering of the arehivolts over the eight great arches of the cupola is a sad 
 abuse, it makes the lofty works which rise above them seem to stand on points. — Gwilt. 
 


 
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ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 77 
 
 Mr. Gwilt, an architect who has written an account of St. Paul’s 
 Cathedral, seems to have exercised the strictest impartiality in the 
 observations he has made relating to this great work ; he admits 
 that Wren was a consummate mechanician, but as an architect he 
 considers him by no means so distinguished. It is obvious to every 
 one who has given the matter due consideration, that in estimating 
 the merits of a building and the constructive skill of its architect, 
 that is superior in which the greatest effects are produced by the 
 use of the slenderest materials. Amongst the most elegant applica- 
 tions of science ever introduced into a building is the conical wall, 
 between the inner and outer domes, upon which the stone lantern 
 of enormous weight is supported. This was truly the thought of 
 a master, but however admirable the science which directed the use 
 of the expedient, it has induced two defects which are scarcely 
 pardonable. The first of these is, that the exterior dome is con- 
 structed of timber, which however well attended to, must neces- 
 sarily decay within a comparatively short period, should even the 
 carelessness of plumbers spare it. The other defect is, the im- 
 mense waste of section which it has caused, and the consequent 
 loss of interior effect sustained. 
 
 In the height of this cone are three tiers of circular perforations, 
 not alone contrived to admit the necessary currents of air in order 
 to keep the walls dry, but to light, and render visible, the framing 
 of the timbers bearing the external dome, and also to keep them 
 free from moisture. The framing of these timbers is most scien- 
 tific ; each frame, thirty- two in number, stands on a stone abutment, 
 with a circular perforation conjoined, with the three cones, at the 
 springing lines. The whole frame is in three stages, three principal 
 upright timbers rise through the said stages, with occasional struts 
 and braces ; having from frame to frame successive tiers of hori- 
 zontal timbers, running with the curvature of the dome, whereon 
 the external covering of lead is laid. Although the appearance of 
 the several frames from their seemingly complex admixture, in the 
 circuitous line round the cone, may, at first view, confound and 
 astonish the beholder, yet, upon examination, the nature of the 
 carpentry becomes familiar to the eye, and from its simplicity, and 
 
78 ST. Paul’s cathedral, 
 
 true geometrical principle, satisfies the mind in the great security 
 afibrded to the whole by these auxiliaries of the dome.*‘ 
 
 The interior of the cupola is painted in two colours, relieved 
 with gilding, by Sir James Thornhill; it is in eight grand compart- 
 ments, representing the principal events in the life of St. Paul. 
 
 The dome is pierced with an eye in its vertex, and through it 
 a vista is carried up to the small dome in which the great cone 
 terminates. When the whole height is seen through the opening 
 from below, the gaze becomes truly fascinating ; this view is very 
 justly considered the prime scenic feature of the whole building. 
 The architectural embellishments of the more lofty parts of the 
 structure are all painted and gilded. 
 
 The western end of the choir commences at the piers supporting 
 the cupola, which are wider than the other piers, and are flanked 
 by Corinthian pilasters at the angles, having a square recess in the 
 intercolumniation ; uniform with these, there are, at its eastern 
 end, piers of the same dimensions, excepting that they are pierced 
 for a communication with the aisles. In other respects the leading 
 architectural features of the choir resemble those of the nave 
 with the addition of the tribune, wherein the altar stands which is 
 domed over from top of the attic. 
 
 The choir screen is a Corinthian colonnade, supporting a gallery 
 for the organ, and bears the following tribute to the memory of 
 the architect. 
 
 SVBTVS . CONDITVR . HVJVS . ECCLESI^ . ET . VRBIS . CONDITOR . 
 CHRISTOPHORVS . WREN . QVI . VIXIT. ANGOS . ULTRA . NONAGINTA. 
 NON . SIBI . SED . BONO . PVBLICO . LECTOR . SI . MONVMENTVM . 
 
 REQVIRIS . CIRCVMSPICE. 
 
 The organ was constructed in 1694 by Bernard Smydt, a Ger- 
 man ; but was entirely taken to pieces and repaired in 1802. 
 
 On each side of the choir is a range of fifteen stalls, exclusive 
 of the bishop’s throne, on the southern side, and a stall for the 
 lord mayor on the northern ; these are beautifully enriched with 
 carving by Grinling Gibbons.^'* 'I'he pulpit was designed by Robert 
 
 Survey of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, by John Carter, F.S.A., an architect 
 whose descriptive remarks are highly interesting, his knowledge of the art of construc- 
 tion giving his writings a precision and accuracy, not often to be obtained. 
 
 22 This artist, celehrated for his excellent carving, was introduced by Evelyn to Sir 
 Christopher Wren and to King Charles II.; the king gave him an appointment to the 
 
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ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 79 
 
 Mylne, cleric of the -works, and carved by Edward Wyatt ; it was 
 erected about the year 1803. The reader’s desk, representing an 
 eagle with expanded wings, supported by a pillar and enclosed 
 within a railing, is a fine example of the kind, entirely brass, richly 
 gilt. The apsis, or tribune, at the eastern end of the choir, is 
 enriched with pilasters painted in imitation of lapis lazuli, with 
 capitals, and ornaments of the entablature, richly gilded. The 
 intercolumniation is panelled with marble. 
 
 In the year 1773 a design was formed for decorating the Cathe- 
 dral with the works of our most eminent painters and sculptors, 
 when the presidents and members of the Eoyal Academy offered 
 to fill some of the compartments with pictures without charge ; 
 but the scheme, although approved of by his majesty, was dis- 
 couraged by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of 
 London as savouring of “ Popery.” About the year 1793 another 
 suggestion to break the monotonous uniformity of the architecture 
 in the interior of the Cathedral, was the admission of national 
 monuments raised in commemoration of eminent characters. The 
 two first monuments erected in this building were those of John 
 Howard, the philanthropist, who died at Cherson, in Russian Tar- 
 tary, in 1790, and Dr. Samuel Johnson, one of the most highly- 
 distinguished critics of the eighteenth century, who died in 1784; 
 both statues were the work of John Bacon, E.A.,®® and occupy 
 corresponding situations in the angles in the front of the smaller 
 piers of the dome. In another angle is a third statue by the same 
 sculptor, erected to the memory of Sir William Jones, an accom- 
 plished scholar, who died at Bengal, in 1794. The fourth statue 
 in a corresponding angle of the dome is that of Sir Joshua Rey- 
 nolds, who died in 1793.'^* 
 
 All the monuments in the church are of white marble, with the 
 exception of the plinths of those which stand upon the pavement. 
 
 board of works, and employed him in the ornaments of most of his palaces, particularly, 
 at Windsor ; hut his principal performance is at Petworth. Gibbons died in 1721. 
 
 25 This eminent sculptor died in 1790 ; there are few of our Cathedrals without 
 some specimen of his skill, but one of his grandest efforts is the monument of Lord 
 Chatham, in Westminster Abbey, completed in 1783. 
 
 2* In the vaults of the Cathedral were also buried the following members of the 
 Royal Academy: James Barry, E.A., who died in 1806. John Opie, R.A., who 
 died in 1807. Benjamin West, President of the Royal Academy, who died in 1820 ; and 
 Sir Thomas Lawrence, President of the Eoyal Academy, who died in 1830. 
 
80 ST. Paul’s cathedral. 
 
 The expenses attending the erection of the Cathedral were 
 defrayed by an imposition on sea eoal imported into London, the 
 annual proceeds of which were sometimes less than the yearly 
 charges for materials and labour, the deficiency was supplied by 
 the contributions of the king, the nobility, the clergy and gentry, 
 and by the sale of some of the old materials. The whole expense 
 of erecting the edifice, deducting the money expended in attempts 
 to repair the old Cathedral, was £736,752 2s. 3d., in addition to 
 which the stone and iron inclosure which surrounds it*’ cost 
 £11,202 Os. 6d.; total, £747,954 2s. 9d. 
 
 It appears that the dean and chapter of St. Paul’s are in no way 
 responsible for the neglect or preservation of the building. When 
 the Cathedral was rebuilt, a fund was provided for its preservation, 
 called The Fabric Fund, and appropriated by Act of Parliament 
 to the repairs of the Cathedral. It is placed under the direction of 
 the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of London, and the 
 Lord Mayor, as trustees of the Fabric Money, and all business 
 relative to the repairs or improvement of the building is solely 
 under their management and control. 
 
 A detail of the origin of one of the abuses at St. Paul’s is given 
 in Mr. Gwilt’s account of the Church, in which it appears that 
 the master carpenter levied a toll called stairfoot money, on all 
 strangers who were desirous of ascending to view the works from 
 1707 to 1711 ; with laudable humanity he applied the proceeds to 
 the relief of those artificers who were disabled by accidents on the 
 works, and to the assistance of their families. The monies arising 
 from this source were too strong a temptation for the dean and 
 chapter ; without compunction they put a stop to the charitable 
 disposition of the monies, and directed the future application of 
 them for the benefit of the officers of the Church. 
 
 The superb iron balustrade which environs St. Paul’s Cathedral cost about 6d. a 
 Pound, and was cast at Gloucester Furnace, about two miles from Lamberhurst, in Sussex; 
 this was for a length of time the principal iron furnace in England, and was supplied 
 with iron-stone dug in the immediate neighbourhood. 
 
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WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The city of Wells is very beautifully and romantically situated at 
 the southern extremity of the almost mountainous forest of Men- 
 dip, about five miles from the town of Glastonbury, and nineteen 
 from the city of Bath. The name is said to have been derived 
 from St. Andrew’s Well, a remarkable spring, which rises near 
 the site of the episcopal palace, and, emitting a copious stream, 
 surrounds that ancient structure with its transparent waters, and 
 thence transmits them through the several parts of the city. It is 
 traditionally indebted for its origin to the ardent religious zeal of 
 Ina, king of the West Saxons, who here founded a church, and 
 dedicated it to St. Andrew the Apostle. A college of priests was 
 subsequently established by Kinulpb, successor to Sigebert; and 
 Adhelm, who had been abbot of Glastonbury, was, A.D. 910, con- 
 secrated by Plegmund, Archbishop of Canterbury, the first bishop 
 of Weils, with Somersetshire for his diocese. The city was in- 
 corporated by lleginald Fitz-Joceline, the son of Joceline, bishop 
 of Salisbury, and bishop of Wells in the reign of Richard I., and 
 is divided into four verdereys, each of which is superintended by 
 two verderers, an office originating in the ancient viridarii, who 
 kept the assizes of the bishop’s forest of Mendip.‘ 
 
 The original Cathedral of Wells, which had been erected by 
 Wulfhelm, the successor of Adhelm, the first bishop, appears to 
 have been much indebted to the munificence of Bishop Giso, one 
 of the chaplains to King Edward the Confessor, who, having 
 increased the revenues of the church, augmented the number of 
 canons, and built the useful appendages of a cloister, hall, and 
 dormitory. This bishop also enlarged and beautified the grand 
 choir of the Cathedral : having presided at Wells eight and twenty 
 years, he died A.D. 1087, and w'as buried on the northern side of 
 the high altar in his church. 
 
 John de Villula, a native of Tours, in France, who succeeded to 
 the bishopric, is said to have practised physic in Bath with great 
 success before his advancement to the episcopal chair. This pre- 
 
 1 Collinson’s History and Antiijuities of ttie County of Somerset, vol. iii., p. 376. 
 
 VOL. I. M 
 
82 WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 late entirely demolished the cloister and other conventual buildings 
 which Bishop Giso had erected for the use of the canons, and in 
 the place where they had stood, built a palace for himself and his 
 successors. This bishop being strongly attached to the city of 
 Bath, whence he derived his fortune, determined to fix his ponti- 
 fical seat there. In this design the prelate was encouraged by the 
 monks of Bath, who petitioned him to unite the abbey with the 
 bishopric, and gave him five hundred marks, with which he pur- 
 chased the whole city of King William Bufus, and then assumed 
 the title of Bishop of Bath. He died in 1122. Great contention 
 afterwards arose betwixt the monks of Bath and Wells as to which 
 city should be honoured with the episcopal seat ; the question being 
 referred by compromise to the bishop’s arbitration, he ordained that 
 the bishops of this diocese should neither be called bishops of Wells 
 as they had been, or of Bath as they were, but that taking their 
 name from both churches, they should for the future be called 
 bishops of Bath and Wells. That each of the churches, when the 
 see was vacant, should appoint an equal number of delegates, by 
 whose votes the bishop should be chosen, and that he should be 
 installed both at Bath and Wells. He rebuilt great part of the 
 Cathedral, and dying in the year 1165, was buried at Bath. 
 
 Joceline Trotman, or de Wells, a native of this city, and one of 
 the canons of this Cathedral, was consecrated bishop of the diocese 
 at Reading, before the end of the year 1205. But very soon after- 
 wards having incurred the king’s displeasure by interdicting the 
 nation, at the pope’s command, he was obliged to relinquish his 
 bishopric, and spent five years abroad in banishment. After his 
 return to his diocese, he applied himself to the enlargement of the 
 church of Wells. He began his work about the year 1214, when 
 he took down the greatest part of the church from the presbytery 
 westward, and commenced rebuilding it on a more spacious and 
 beautiful plan calculated to produce a noble and admirable effect; 
 he rededicated it Oct. 23, 1239. This bishop not only rebuilt the 
 western front of the Cathedral as it now stands, one of the most 
 remarkable specimens of enriched architecture in England, but also 
 built and endowed two costly chapels, one in his palace at Wokey, 
 and the other at Wells. Bishop Joceline died 19th of November, 
 1242, and was buried in the middle of the choir. The entire plan 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 83 
 
 or model of the church adopted by this bishop appears never to 
 have been departed from, but to have been strictly followed in the 
 works of successive bishops till its total completion by Bishop 
 Stillington, in 1465. Kalph Shrewsbury, the thirtieth bishop of 
 Wells, who succeeded in 1329, a century after its commencement, 
 excelled almost all his predecessors in this see in works of liberality 
 and munificence, and has the merit of continuing the original plan 
 in his great benefactions to the Cathedral. 
 
 The very beautiful architectural style adopted in the reign of 
 Henry III., is remarkable for the vast skill and taste displayed in 
 the construction and ornamental parts ; the boldness and lightness 
 of all the edifices raised at this period are yet unrivalled, and com- 
 mand a very high respect for the taste and ability of the architects. 
 In Flaxman’s Lectures, that classical sculptor did not fail to 
 commend highly the tasteful decorations of rich foliage and the 
 gracefully disposed statues with which architecture of this period 
 was enriched, but especially directed the attention of his pupils to 
 this Cathedral as rebuilt by Bishop Joceline. The western front 
 of the church equally testifies the piety and comprehension of the 
 bishop’s mind ; and the sculpture, in Mr. Flaxman’s opinion, pre- 
 sents the most useful and interesting subjects possible to be chosen. 
 On the southern side, above the western door, are alti relievi of the 
 Creation ® in its different parts, the Deluge, and important Acts of 
 the Patriarchs.® Companions to these on the northern side are alti 
 relievi of the principal circumstances in the life of Christ. Above 
 them are two rows of statues, larger than nature, in niches, of 
 kings, queens, and noble patrons of the church, saints, bishops, 
 and other religious, from its foundation to the reign of Henry III. 
 Near the pediment is our Saviour come to judgment, attended by 
 angels, and his twelve apostles. The upper arches on each side, 
 along the whole of the western front and continued in the northern 
 and southern ends, are occupied by figures rising from their graves, 
 strongly expressing the hope, fear, astonishment, stupefaction or 
 
 * There are many compositions of the Almighty creating Eve, by Giotto, Buon, 
 Amico, Buffalmaco, Ghiberti, and Michael Angelo ; but this is certainly the oldest and 
 not inferior to any of the others. — Flaxman. 
 
 ® The death of Isaac and the figure of St. John are particularly instanced by Mr 
 Flaxman as beautiful compositions. 
 
84 
 
 WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 despair, inspired by the presence of the Lord and Judge of the 
 world in that awful moment. In speaking of the execution of such 
 a work, Mr. Flaxmau admits that due regard must be paid to the 
 circumstances under which it was produced in comparison with 
 those of our own times. There were neither prints, nor printed 
 books, to assist the artist; the sculptor could not be instructed in 
 anatomy, for there were no anatomists. Some knowledge of optics 
 and a glimmering of perspective were reserved for the researches 
 of so sublime a genius as Roger Bacon some years afterwards. ,A 
 little knowledge of geometry and mechanics was exclusively con- 
 fined to two or three learned monks in the whole country, and the 
 principles of those sciences as applied to the figure and motion of 
 man and inferior animals were known to none. Therefore the 
 work is necessarily ill-drawn and deficient in principle, and much 
 of the sculpture is rude and severe, yet in parts there is a beauti- 
 ful simplicity, an irresistible sentiment, and sometimes a grace 
 excelling more modern productions. 
 
 It is very remarkable, adds IMr. Flaxman, that the sculpture 
 on the western front of Wells Cathedral was finished in 1242, two 
 years after the birth of Cimabue, the restorer of painting in Italy, 
 and the work was going on at the same time that Nicolo Pisano, 
 the Italian restorer of sculpture, exercised the art in his own 
 country. It was also finished forty-six years before the Cathedral 
 of Amiens, and thirty-six years before the Cathedral of Orvieto 
 was begun, and it seems to be the first specimen of such magnificent 
 and varied sculpture, united in a series of sacred history, that is 
 to be found in Western Europe. It is therefore probable that the 
 general idea of the work might be brought from the East by some 
 of the crusaders. There are two arguments strongly in favour of 
 the execution being English — the family name of the bishop is 
 English, J oceline Trotman ; and the style both of sculpture and 
 architecture is wholly different from the tombs of Edward the 
 Confessor and King Henry III., which were by Italian artists.^ 
 
 Thomas Beckington, who had been one of the canons of this 
 Cathedral, was elected bishop of Bath and Wells in 1443, and 
 continued in the peaceable enjoyment of his see until his decease 
 in 1445. Of the manner in which this exemplary bishop employed 
 Flaxmau’s Lectures on Sculpture. 
 
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 Flalt 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 85 
 
 great part of his time, and the vast revenues of his see, he has left 
 splendid evidence ; and so long as one stone of his Cathedral 
 remains, so long must his memory, his taste, and his liberality, be 
 held in veneration. It has been happily conjectured that he imbibed 
 his love for, and perhaps skill in, architecture from his first patron, 
 William of Wykehain, bishop of Winchester, from whom Bishop 
 Waynfiete is known to have acquired his knowledge of that 
 science. Beckington’s munificence was scarcely inferior to that of 
 either of those celebrated personages. He repaired and beautified 
 all the episcopal houses in his diocese, on most of which he caused 
 his own rebus to be affixed. He also erected a considerable part 
 of the cloisters of this Cathedral, and built and endowed a chantry 
 chapel on the southern side of the choir ; the whole of the college 
 of the vicar’s choral was rebuilt at his expense by his executors. His 
 attention was not confined to the mere appendages of his Cathedral. 
 Amongst other benefactions to the city of Wells he built “ the new 
 work,” a row of houses on the northern side of the market-place, 
 and two large gatehouses at the eastern end ; he also granted per- 
 mission to the inhabitants of the city to have a conduit near the 
 cross, to be supplied by pipes from St. Andrew’s well, within the 
 precincts of the palace.® “ Itis at Wells,” says Sir Harris Nicolas, 
 in his Life of this Bishop, “ that the lover of the arts and the 
 admirer of the zeal and disinterestedness of the prelates of the 
 middle ages will be most impressed with respect for Bishop 
 Beckington ; but whilst viewing the effects of his munificence will 
 he be able to refrain from asking himself, why it is that the most 
 opulent successors of those great men have so rarely imitated 
 them ? Will his respect for the established order of things be 
 sufficient to repress the reflexion, that with nearly the same revenues 
 the modern clergy seldom indeed beautify or repair cathedrals, or 
 found colleges. There is an indifference, an apathy about ancient 
 ecclesiastical buildings in this country which is really surprising ; 
 in proof of which it may be observed, that the repairs of churches 
 are generally left to the superintendence of uneducated and in- 
 competent men, who everywhere leave marks of their barbarous 
 ignorance and want of taste. Whether this neglect of what are 
 termed the “ Temples of God,” is indicative of greater zeal in his 
 * Life prefixed to “ The Journal of Eeckington," printed in 1823. 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 86 
 
 service than was felt by the reviled monkish priesthood, or whether 
 the public who are so commonly accused, from the pulpit, of in- 
 difference to their religious duties are likely to become more strict 
 observers of them, whilst the richly endowed hierarchy of England 
 allow the venerable religious fabrics to fall to decay, may be a pro- 
 per subject for consideration of the dignitaries of our church.”® 
 
 The Cathedral Church of Wells, as it now remains, is not only 
 one of the most perfect in its original plan, designed in the early 
 part of the reign of Henry III., but its appendages are more com- 
 plete than those of any other Cathedral in the kingdom. It is this 
 general harmony of the surrounding buildings that renders the 
 effect on first view, particularly striking. The late C. A. Stothard, 
 an artist of extraordinary talent and application in delineating the 
 monumental antiquities of his country, writes thus from Wells : — 
 “ The Cathedral, with its various surrounding gates, the magnifi- 
 cent close, and the west front covered with figures of the finest 
 workmanship, certainly must bear the palm from all others.”' 
 
 The close, called the liberty of St. Andrew, from its western side, 
 presents a scene in perfect harmony with a painter’s feelings ; a 
 broad lawn extends round the northern front of the church to the 
 beautiful chapter-house, whence an ornamental gallery of com- 
 munication is carried over an arch to the vicar’s college, a large 
 ancient quadrangle, having a hall and chapel at its northern and 
 southern extremities. On this side of the Cathedral Church is also 
 the deanery, a mansion in which Dean Gunthorp, who rebuilt it, is 
 said to have entertained King Henry VH., on his return from the 
 west country. In allusion to the name of Gunthorp, several large 
 guns are carved on the house. On the southern front of the 
 Cathedral are the cloisters, larger than those of Salisbury, and the 
 bishop’s palace, originally built by Bishop John de Villula, sur- 
 rounded by an embattled wall and moat ; the area of the palace 
 occupies nearly seven acres of ground ; but both the hall and chapel 
 have been suffered to become dilapidated. 
 
 The western front of the Cathedral occupies a space of one 
 hundred and fifty feet in length, including the boldly projecting 
 buttresses of the large towers, which rise to the height of not less 
 
 ^ Page C5. ' ilemoirs of C. A. Stothard. 
 
WF, 1. L S C A'Tl-' H :ED IK A IL. , 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 87 
 
 than one hundred and thirty feet. The statues, of the size of life 
 and larj^er, which are upon this front, amount to one hundred and 
 fifty-three in number, and of smaller figures there are more than 
 double that number. In the centre is a double doorway opening 
 upon the nave, with small lateral doorways to the aisles ; above the 
 course, at the springing of the arch of the central doorway, is a 
 continued series of arches, not without ornament, but less highly 
 enriched than the upper compartments of the front. Three central 
 lancet arch windows ® are separated by piers of nearly equal width 
 to the openings, a peculiar feature in the earlier stage of the 
 pointed architecture, satisfying the antiquary as to the precise date 
 of the foundation of the structure. The most remarkable part of 
 the western front is the enrichment of the projecting buttresses, 
 and the large space over the great western window, which excites 
 almost universal admiration, independently of its great antiquity. 
 
 Few of the earliest specimens of sculpture which adorned the 
 structures of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries are now remaining, 
 but they were almost invariably placed in niches of the pointed 
 style of architecture, whence it became a matter of necessity to 
 introduce but one figure, and that in an upright position ; yet under 
 all these disadvantages a competent judge may discover in the 
 majority of the works of our ancient sculptors a freedom and 
 correctness of design that did, with due encouragement, produce 
 works equal to those of the Italian sehool. If (says an able critic 
 on sculpture) we examine the countenances of the kings and saints 
 scattered over cathedrals and some churches, it will be evident 
 that the artists who made them were capable of expressing dignity 
 and piety; their drapery is generally in large graceful fold.s, 
 correspondent to the position of the limbs.® 
 
 * The term lancet has been happily applied to the tall narrow windows which 
 enlighten the structures of the thirteenth century. Salisbury Cathedral is the most 
 complete specimen of that style ; these lights have each a pointed arch at top, and 
 the arch is frequently raised on straight lines above the mouldings of the impost, where 
 such mouldings occur. This is indeed the lancet form, comparing the arch to the head 
 of a lance or dart. A mixture of semicircular and lancet arches is not uncommonly 
 found in buildings of the twelfth century, when the pointed arch began to prevail. 
 Pointed architecture is so termed in allusion not only to its characteristic arch, but 
 to its pinnacles, spires, etc., and seems most appropriate and most expressive of its 
 character. — Fiigin’s Specimens of Gothic Architecture, vol. i. p. 2. 
 
 ® The admirer of sculpture cannot fail of being highly gratified by tracing tho 
 progress of English statuary in that vast field for observation, Westminster Abbey 
 
WKLLS rATHEDRAL. 
 
 88 
 
 The Catliedral Church of Wells (continues the same author' is 
 decorated with a profusion of sculpture decidedly of a more ele- 
 vated character than that at Salisbury, the church of which was 
 erected about the same time. Here may be seen a number of alti 
 relievi of two or three figures, representing some of the choicest 
 subjects selected from the Old and New Testaments, in the arrange- 
 ment of which many of the groups display very considerable taste 
 and judgment. In more elevated situations are ranges of niches, 
 containing statues of the principal personages connected with the 
 church, such as saints, kings, queens, nobility, and clergy. The 
 principal subject in the west front is evidently Christ attended by 
 angels and his twelve apostles ; many of the designs occupying the 
 upper arches round the church are emblematical of the Creation, 
 the Deluge, the life of Christ, and particularly of the Resurrection 
 and the Day of Judgment.*" The artist who was employed at 
 Wells, a perfect master of his profession, has left occular evidence 
 of his superior abilities, and, although these works exhibit great 
 deficlences in what is now termed classicality or principles of art, 
 they yet possess many fine original sentiments and occasional 
 excellencies which overbalance minor defects, and are consequently 
 fairly deserving of esteem, especially as they were produced long 
 before the revival of arts and learning in Italy.'* 
 
 The porch on the northern side of the church is an elegant 
 specimen of the early period of pointed architecture ; the buttresses 
 are plain, and the pinnacles without ornament, but its great merit is 
 its simplicity of design. The great enrichment of the highly pointed 
 arch of entrance is an abundance of beautiful recessed mouldings 
 peculiar to the style in which it is erected ; the insulated and 
 banded shafts of the pillars on the sides have boldly sculptured 
 capitals, very curiously ornamented, amongst the foliage of which 
 is represented the remarkable events in the life and martyrdom of 
 
 Churcn, -where he -will find almost an annual succession of architectural and monu- 
 mental figures from its foundation to the present day. 
 
 Many other productions of the same date are impressive and rich in imagination ; 
 Dome are remarkable for the novel and poetical ideas -which they display, as at the 
 Cathedral at Peterborough there are a number of well-executed clover designs, lepre* 
 eenting infernal spirits tormenting sinners. 
 
 " Summary of early Sculpture in England ; a very interesting paper on the subject, 
 published in the Library of Fine Arts. 
 
X — I o -n n o 
 
 
 Seal/? of Feet ■ 
 
 KKFEREXCE to dio RLA^J 
 
 A y^a re. X' .Aisles 
 
 b JyY/nsept 
 C (Junr &Aisles 
 
 REFERENCE to the MONUMENTS 
 
 L<uh/ Gulp el 
 Syjohiis iluipel 
 S^lvotltefines Giapel 
 L 'h t ip ter Sc ms 
 yoTih Porch 
 ( loister'Iard- 
 Gock Room SeVestJ'y 
 
 1 Bishop Rubtvitks (yiantrif 
 
 2 Btship Sudors 
 
 2> Myiliam ae ta March s Monument 
 4 Joan Viscoaniess L Js/r 
 B John StorOiwaite 
 
 6 lhatilicnrp Jfusm 
 
 7 Bishop BecJtin^ton 's ( hantry 
 
 8 Bishop Still 
 
 Ancient Tombs asstyned U> Bishops 
 22 jBrt/helnt .Rinetvald SiAlwyn 
 
 12 Bishop Oiso 
 
 15 Bishop Balph Shreivshury 
 
 11 Bishop Richard Kidder 
 
 \B Ancient Tombs assigned to Biships 
 2 -• j Bormld . Ethelwyn Biithwyn 
 
 18 Bishop IlareweU 
 
 19 Bishop Bitton like 2""^/ 
 
 2^ Bishop Berkeley 
 
 2\ Bishop Crichton 
 
 22 l)(Yin Forest 
 
 23 Bishop Bitton f the J 
 
 24 Bishop Drokensford 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 89 
 
 St. Edmund the King, who was shot with arrows, and afterwards 
 beheaded in the year of our Lord 870. These subjects possess 
 great merit from the elegance of the sculpture and intricacy of the 
 design. 
 
 An uniform parapet, with corbel table and cornice, is con- 
 tinued all round the walls of the church over the clerestory and 
 the aisles. Attached to an angle of the western buttress of the 
 northern transept is a curious ancient clock, with figures in com- 
 plete armour, which strike the hours on a bell. The whole of 
 the Cathedra] from the western front, excepting the upper parts of 
 the towers on that part of the edifice, to about the middle of the 
 choir, from its similarity of style and general uniform character of 
 the architecture, is reputed to have been erected by Bishop Joceline. 
 Before the year 1264, the whole of the more eastern part of the 
 building, together with the Lady Chapel, was nearly completed. 
 This is satisfactorily proved, from the style of the workmanship, 
 as well as from the fact of Bishop Bitton, who died in 1264, having 
 been buried in the new chapel of the Virgin Mary ; the windows, 
 filled with beautiful tracery, are larger than those of the choir and 
 aisles. The chapter house was built in the time of Bishop William 
 de la March. In the year 1325, it appears that an indulgence of 
 forty days was granted to those who contributed towards the new 
 work of this Cathedral. The central tow'er is of this period ; 
 and it is known that the upper part of the south-western tower 
 was built in the reign of Richard II., before the year 1386, at the 
 expense of Bishop Harewell and the contribution of the dean and 
 chapter of Wells. The same prelate also liberally gave one 
 hundred marks towards the glazing of the compartments of the 
 western window. The north-western tower, above the third row 
 of statues, is also known to have been built by Bishop Bubwith, 
 from the circumstance of his arms being sculptured on the western 
 front of the tower. 
 
 The total length of the nave is one hundred and ninety-one 
 feet, its whole breadth, including the aisles, is sixty-seven feet, 
 and in height this part of the church is sixty-seven feet. The 
 choir is about one hundred and eight feet in length, and the 
 transept is one hundred and thirty-five feet in length. The height 
 of the nave is not so great as that of Salisbury, and there is a 
 
 N 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 90 
 
 considerable difference in tlie length; but the effect produced bv 
 entering it is not devoid of grandeur, in consequence of its 
 admirable proportion and complete preservation. The nave is 
 separated from its aisles by ten pointed arches on either side ; over 
 each of the aisles is a triforium and clerestory, in one uniform 
 style of architecture, with the groining of the ceiling very plain. 
 The lancet arches of the triforium, or gallery over the aisles, are 
 singularly characteristic of the early period of the original work in 
 the Cathedral but the windows, both of the aisles and clerestory, 
 have evidently been altered since the reign of Henry III. The 
 mullions are disposed in all the windows precisely in the manner 
 which prevailed in the time of King Richard II., when Bishop 
 Harewell is stated to have been engaged in carrying on the work 
 of the Cathedral. In the great western window of the nave, over 
 the entrance, are remains of numerous figures in painted glass; 
 amongst which were representations of Jesus Christ, Moses and 
 Aaron, King Ina, Bishop Shrewsbury, and Bishop Crichton, the 
 last of whom repaired the window in the reign of King Charles II. 
 Painted glass was an almost indispensable embellishment required 
 for these lofty windows, and was employed to fill the immense 
 spaces with the splendour of brilliant hues, which were disposed 
 in various ornamental figures, harmonizing in style and character 
 with the architecture of the structure. Attached to a window of 
 the clerestory and above the triforium on the southern side of the 
 nave, is a minstrel gallery, with appropriate embellishments. 
 
 In the middle of the nave is an ancient marble slab in the pave- 
 ment, which is said to cover the remains of Ina, king of the West 
 Saxons, the reputed founder of the original Church of Wells. 
 
 In distinguishing the pure lancet style of architecture from any other, it 
 will be evident to the critical observer, says Mr. Dallaway, in his Discourses, that 
 the decorative particles were sparingly introduced, and that regularity of design 
 and a simple uniformity are strictly maintained. A most beautiful instance was the 
 nave of St. Mary’s Abbey Church, in York, built between the years 1270 and 1292, 
 but now dilapidated. There are engravings of the subject in the “ Vetusta Monu- 
 menta,” published by the Society of Antiquaries. P. F. Robinson, a distinguished 
 architect, executed a very perfect plan and some beautiful drawings of the remains 
 of the chapter house ; the carved ornaments of which are specimens of Anglo- 
 Norman architectural sculpture, that have been pronounced equal to the work of 
 any style or period. The same gentleman, who has devoted much attention to this 
 abbey at York, communicated his researches to the Institute of British Architects, in 
 July, 1835. 
 
CATSLED'iEAlj 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 91 
 
 Bishop Haselshaw, who died in the year 1308, was buried in 
 the nave, near the altar for the celebration of matins. The slab of 
 marble, sixteen feet in length, still remains ; but the intagliated 
 brass with which it was inlaid is irrecoverably lost. The episcopal 
 figure appears to have been ten feet long. In the southern aisle 
 is a large mural monument to Bishop Hooper, who died in 1727 
 
 Bishop Ralph Erghum, formerly bishop of Salisbury, who died 
 in 1400, was buried in the nave. The slab remains, with indents 
 of an episcopal figure and two shields, with which the marble was 
 originally inlaid. Near it is a tombstone for John Phreas, who 
 was nominated to this see on the death of Bishop Beckington, but 
 who died before his consecration. 
 
 On the northern side of the nave, the space beneath the ninth 
 arch from the western entrance is occupied by a monumental chapel, 
 erected at the expense of Bishop Bubwith, wherein, after his 
 decease on the 27th of October, 1424, he was buried. He en- 
 dowed it with the manor of Bicknoller, and by will appointed 
 three priests to celebrate a daily mass here for the good estate of 
 his soul. This bishop also founded an almshouse near St. Cuth- 
 bert’s Church, in the city of W ells, and erected a chapel in the 
 Abbey Church of St. Peter, at Bath.’* The monumental chapel 
 is enclosed by an hexagonal screen in compartments, in one of which 
 is the door ; the lower part is panelled with enriched arches, and 
 is partially open, where the mullions are more complicated ; above 
 the screen is a bold cornice of wreathed foliage. At the eastern 
 end of the chapel in the interior, where the altar formerly stood, 
 are canopied niches, now mutilated ; and at the western end are 
 the arms of the see, impaling those of the bishop’s own family. 
 
 On the southern side of the nave, immediately opposite to 
 Bishop Bebwilh’s chantry, is another very beautiful monumental 
 chapel, erected by Hugh Sugar, LLD., treasurer of Wells, in the 
 
 Notwithstanding there were six bishops interred within the abbey church of Bath 
 antecedent to Bishop Montagu, who died in 1618, namely, John de Villula, ob. 1122 i 
 Godfrey, 1135; Robert, 1165; Reginald Fitz Joceline, 1191; Savaricus, 1205; and 
 Roger, 1247 ; besides several priors of Bath and Dunster, and many distinguished per- 
 sonages, there are no remains, no trace of any ancient monument whatever. Several 
 stone coffins have been discovered in different parts of the structure, and in one taken 
 from underneath the pavement of the northern transept was found a curious chalice, or 
 cup used for the wine in the eucharist. — CollinsorC s History and Antiquities of the County 
 of Somersetshire, vol. i. p. 67. 
 
22 
 
 WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 reign of Edward IV., and who died in 1489. The design of this 
 chapel is nearly similar to that of the last-mentioned, but it is more 
 highly enriched. Above the arches of the screen of enclosure is a 
 bold and broad cornice, charged with demi-angels bearing shields 
 of the founder’s arms — a pun on his name — three sugar loaves, 
 surmounted by a doctor’s cap : his initials ; and the emblems 
 
 of Christ’s passion. The same initials and arms are repeated on 
 shields upon the ceiling in the interior of the chapel. At the 
 eastern end are five niches crowned with turretted canopies, and 
 the whole surface of the interior is enriched with architectural 
 ornaments, very delicately and beautifully wrought. Besides these 
 two splendid chapels there are very few monuments, remarkable 
 as works of art, in the nave. Against the great pillar on the western 
 side of the above chapel is a curious stone pulpit, erected by 
 Bishop Knight, who died in the year 1547, which Bishop Godwyn 
 says ‘‘ he caused to be built for his toinbe.”'® In front of the 
 pulpit are the arms of the bishop, and the following inscription : — 
 
 PREACHE . THOV . THE . WORDE . BE . FERVENT . IN . SEASON . AND 
 . OVT . OF . SEASON . REPROVE . REBVKE . EXHORT . IN . ALL . LONG 
 . SVFFERING . & . DOCTRYNE . 2tIMO.‘® 
 
 Bishop William Knight, who erected this pulpit, was frequently 
 employed in embassies by King Henry VIII. : he also erected a 
 cross in the market-place of the city of Wells, a description of 
 ornament now fast disappearing. Near the entrance into the choir, 
 under the great central tower, lies interred Bishop Bobert Burnell, 
 of the baronial family of that name, who died at Berwick-upon- 
 Tweed, 25th of October, 1292 and near the last lies Thomas 
 Lovel, sub-dean of Wells, who died in 1524. 
 
 The central tower is one hundred and sixty feethigh, and the total 
 
 Catalogue of the Bishops of England, p. 310. 
 
 In the nave of Strasbourg Cathedral is a celebrated stone pulpit; but in the 
 ancient churches there was little preaching, and consequently but few pulpits in England 
 before the Reformation. 
 
 He was treasurer and chancellor of England in the reign of Edward I., by whom 
 he was much esteemed, and employed in his "Welsh affairs. He built a great hall on the 
 western side of the episcopal palace at Wells, which was demolished in the reign of 
 Edward VI. At Acton Burnell, in Shropshire, are the remains of a castle, founded by 
 Bishop Burnell. It is a quadrangular building, with a square tower at each corner. In 
 this castle was a great hall, in which King Edward I. held a parliament in the year 
 1283. The Statutum de Mercatoribus enacted here, is from that circumstance better 
 known as the statute of Acton Burnell. This hall was originally 183 feet long by 41 
 feet in breadth, but the gable ends only new remain. 
 
4 ' 
 
vrElLlL)''! ^ lf‘ M E 
 
 

WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 93 
 
 length of the church, from east to west, is about three hundred and 
 seventy-one feet. Under the central tower the sides each contain 
 a strong support in form of an insulated arch, which sustains 
 another arch, inverted on its point, all united with the side piers, 
 and having spandrils perforated with a circle in each, a more 
 effectual and scientific abutment could not have been invented : 
 that for the same purpose in Salisbury Cathedral is slightly different 
 in its plan. As the massive walls of the nave, transept, and choir of 
 this church, formed substantial buttresses to the exterior of the 
 tower piers, these double arches, with open spandrils, are cal- 
 culated to form an excellent counterpoise to the lateral pressure ; 
 here the support is continued from the base to the top of the pier, 
 but at Salisbury the abutment appears to act only on a small part 
 of it.'® 
 
 The nave and transept of the church are of the same style of 
 architecture, and of the same date of construction ; but all the 
 building eastward of the choir is of a more ornamental and lighter 
 style than that to the west, and exhibits greater delicacy in point 
 of execution : this part of the church was evidently erected at a 
 subsequent period to that of King Henry III. 
 
 At the extremity of the northern transept is a monument in 
 memory of Thomas Cornish, provost of Oriel College, Oxford, who 
 was precentor and canon residentiary of this Cathedral, and died 
 in the year 1513. The western aisle of this transept is used as a 
 clock room and vestry. The curious and remarkable clock is said 
 to have been made in the reign of Edward II. by Peter Lightfoot, 
 a monk of Glastonbury Abbey, about 1325 : its dial not only shows 
 the time of day, but the phases of the moon and other astronomical 
 signs, the hours not being marked by figures and lines, but by long 
 and short rays.*® At the summit of this ancient clock is a re- 
 presentation of four or five mounted knights, accoutred for a 
 tournament, which, at the time of striking the hours, are put into 
 action, and revolve round a centre by means of machinery attached. 
 
 See Plate 3. — An interior view of the grand transept at Salisbury Cathedral. 
 
 Soon after the date assigned to this complicated clock, King Edward III. 
 invited clockmakers from Delft, in Holland, granting them his protection to exercise 
 their trade without molestation in any part of his kingdom. The pendulum clock, it is 
 well known, was the inventionof Christian Huygens, a native of the Iltgue, where he 
 died in 1G95, ast. 66, 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 94 
 
 At one of tlie angles of this transept is also a figure of a man seated, 
 who, at the hours and quarters, strikes a bell. 
 
 In the centre of the southern transejit is a font. The font by 
 right belongs only to parish churches, and as a special privilege 
 was granted to conventual churches and monasteries. A door at 
 the western extremity opens upon the cloisters, and against the 
 southern wall of this transept is a monument of Bishop William de 
 la March, who died in the year 1303. His effigy is boldly sculp- 
 tured in his episcopal robes, in the act of benediction, and with his 
 crosier resting on his left arm. Near this is a dilapidated monument 
 of Joan, viscountess LTsle,who died in 14G4 : she was the daughter 
 and heiress of Thomas Chedder, and wife of John, viscount LTsle, 
 son of J ohn Talbot, the celebrated Earl of Shrewsbury, under whom 
 he served in France, and was slain at the fatal battle of Chastillon, 
 in 1453. 
 
 In the eastern aisle, which is called St. Martin’s Chapel, is a 
 tomb of John Storthwaite, precentor and chancellor of Wells, who 
 died about 1454 : upon it is his effigy, within a recess in the south 
 wall. In an adjoining chapel, dedicated to St. Calixtus, is a 
 monument for Dean Henry Husee, who died in 1305 ; his effigy, 
 of alabaster, is in his canonical habit. 
 
 Over the choir screen, which is of stone, is the organ originally 
 built under the direction of Dean Crichton, in 1664, and repaired 
 by S. Green, in 1786. On each side of the choir are six arches, the 
 three westernmost, with the pillars whence they spring, are similar 
 in their architectural character to those of the nave ; but eastward 
 the arches are lighter in appearance and more elegant in proportion. 
 The enriched groining of the ceiling, the elaborate screen work in 
 front of the triforium, the stalls and bishop’s throne, are in excellent 
 taste. The altar screen is extremely appropriate and low ; and by 
 that means affords such a view eastward of the choir, as is rarely 
 seen in our Cathedrals ; the light clustered pillars supporting the 
 richly groined ceiling, form a beautiful architectural vista, ter- 
 minated by a range of large windows, filled with stained glass, in 
 the Lady Chapel. At the eastern end of the Cathedral choir, above 
 the altar, is a window divided into many lights by mullions and 
 branching ribs of varied tracery, also containing stained glass ; the 
 heads of the arches to the bays, or grand divisions, are adorned 
 
■WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 95 
 
 with splendid canopies radiant with colour, and disposed suitably 
 to the architectural design of the several compartments of the 
 window. 
 
 On the southern side of the chancel is a beautiful monumental 
 chapel of Bishop Beckington, who died in 14G5 ; it occupies the 
 space beneath one of the arches of the choir, a richly ornamented 
 canopy forming the roof, the ceiling of which is adorned with 
 pendents, terminating in small bosses, delicately wrought. Amidst 
 all this rich decoration the bishop is represented in alabaster, in 
 pontificalibus, upon a large slab ; beneath this figure, laying in 
 state, is another effigy, in stone, of a cadaver, or emaciated body, 
 such as is not very uncommon on tombs of ecclesiastics, although 
 it is rarely seen on monuments of the nobility. The slab is sup- 
 ported by small pillars and arches, forming a canopy to the cadaver 
 below. 
 
 Thomas Chandler, who was chancellor of this diocese, wrote a 
 lifeof William of Wykeham and dialogues in his praise, addressed 
 to Beckington, and describes this bishop as the most elegant man 
 of his time, and says that he was possessed of nearly every virtue 
 which adorns human nature. Beckington is said to have materially 
 increased his fame by a very learned treatise on the Salique Law, 
 which is now extant: his high reputation recommended him to 
 Humphrey, duke of Gloucester, his patron, to whom he held the 
 office of chancellor, and it is probable that he was indebted to that 
 prince for the appointment of tutor to King Henry VI. In the 
 year 1413 he was also appointed keeper of the privy seal, but seems 
 to have resigned that office in the ensuing year. His long services 
 were at length rewarded by the wealthy bishopric of Bath and 
 Wells being conferred upon him in September, 1443, and he was 
 consecrated in the king’s new college of Eton by the Bishop of 
 Lincoln, assisted by the bishops of Salisbury and Llandaff, on the 
 13th of October, on which day the chapel of the college was hal- 
 lowed, and he sang mass in the same. Bishop Beckington must 
 have been then nearly sixty years old, and whether from the 
 advanced slate of his age, or in consequence of the loss of his 
 patron, the duke of Gloucester, or from a desire to die bishop of 
 this diocese, in which he was born, an ambition neither extra- 
 ordinary in its nature, nor of unfrcQuent occurrence, he was never 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 96 
 
 translated, but continued bishop of Bath and Wells until his 
 decease.*® 
 
 Between the two easternmost pillars on the same side of the 
 choir is a monument of Bishop Still, who died in 1607, erected 
 to his memory by his eldest son Nathaniel, with an epitaph by 
 Camden. This prelate was long the reputed author of “ Gammer 
 Gurton’s Needle,” the first English comedy, but which appears to 
 have been originally printed in 1551, when he was no more than 
 eight years of age. 
 
 In the northern aisle of the choir are three ancient tombs, 
 respectively assigned to Bishops Brithelm, Kinewald, and Alwyn ; 
 the first of whom died in the year 973, the second in 976, and the 
 last A.D. 1000; but they are all seemingly of subsequent date to 
 the building of the present church. 
 
 At the back of the stalls, under the third arch of the choir on 
 the same side, is a tomb ascribed to Bishop Giso, who died in 1008, 
 but it must be considered as doubtful. 
 
 Near the second pillar westward from the back of the choir is 
 a defaced monument of Bishop Ralph Shrewsbury, who died in 
 1363 ; it originally stood within the choir, but was removed about 
 the time of the Reformation.** Between the two next pillars is a 
 monument in memory of Bishop Richard Kidder, D.D., who, 
 together with his lady, was killed in his bed by the fall of a chimney 
 stack in the episcopal palace, during a violent storm on the night 
 of the 26th of November, 1703. This monument was erected by 
 the bishop’s daughter, who is represented by a figure reclining on 
 an altar, and contemplating the urns supposed to contain the ashes 
 of her parents. 
 
 At the western end of the southern aisle are three episcopal 
 effigies of very early execution, which are said to represent Bishops 
 Burwold, Ethelwyn, and Brithwyn ; the first of whom died A.D. 
 
 Life prefixed to tlie Journal of Bishop Beckington, 1442. 
 
 2' Bishop Ealph Shrewsbury granted to the prior of the hospital of St. J ohn, in the 
 city of Wells, and the friars of that house, in 1350, all the lands and tenements whereof 
 he had been enfeoffed by AVilliam de Luttleton, William de Bath, and William de Bur- 
 wardsley, to the end that they should pay a stipend of six marks sterling per annum 
 to a chaplain to say mass at the altar of Saint Martin, in the Cathedral Church of Wells, 
 for the good estate of the said bishop while living, and for his soul after his decease ; and 
 also for the soul of John de Somerton, formerly abbot of Muchelney, and the souls of 
 all his successors in that covLyeni.— Collinsor^s History of Somersetshire, voi. 
 iii. p. 402. 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 97 
 
 1000, and the two latter, A.D. 1026. It has been observed by 
 more than one writer on the subject, that sculptured figures of 
 the thirteenth century are superior to similar performances of the 
 two succeeding centuries : from this circumstance a conclusion 
 arises, in direct opposition to the assertion that English art was 
 derived from France or Italy. Had that been the case, the same 
 gradation as in the workmanship of the parent schools would have 
 been apparent : yet the custom of carving a figure of the deceased 
 in bas relief on the tomb, seems likely to have been brought from 
 France, where it was continued in imitation of the Romans. 
 
 Nearly opposite the tomb assigned to Bishop Burwold is that 
 of Bishop John Harewell, chancellor of Gascony and chaplain to 
 Edward the Black Prince, who died in 1386, and was buried before 
 the altar of St. Calixtus. His effigy of alabaster has been much 
 defaced ; the bishop’s mitre is curiously decorated, but the head of 
 the crosier, generally of rich workmanship, is gone. 
 
 The monument of Bishop William Bitton, the second bishop of 
 Wells of that name, is placed at the back of the cathedral choir, 
 between the second and third pillars from the west. He died in 
 the year 1274. The tomb consists of a marble slab, on which is 
 sculptured an episcopal figure in high relief, and in the act of 
 conferring benediction.*'^ Angels, with censers, performing the 
 service of Acolytes, fill the spandrils of the ornamented niche in 
 which this bishop is enshrined. 
 
 At the eastern end of the church towards the Lady Chapel is a 
 small transept, on the north called St. John’s Chapel, in which is a 
 monument erected in memory of Bishop Gilbert Berkeley, who 
 died in the year 1581. He was very rich, but, adds Sir John 
 Harrington, “ neither church nor the poor w’ere the better for it.”^* 
 
 On the eastern side of the same chapel is a monument and 
 
 ** It was an ancient custom for the bishop, before he received the eucharist in 
 the sacrifice of the mass, to bless the people in a form of prayer appropriate to the feast 
 of the day. This solemn observation was made on the fraction of the host, and as that 
 was the time at which a blessing was asked for the living, so also it was the 
 special moment when on the day of burial the deceased was prayed for by name. 
 This blessing was given originally by the imposition of hands, but, at a later age, that 
 ceremony was disused, and the sign of the cross alone accompanied the benediction of 
 the people. See a very interesting dissertation by John Gage, Esq., on St. Jithelwold’s 
 Benedictional, an illuminated M.S. of the tenth century, in the library of his Grace the 
 Duke of Devonshire. — Archaiologice, vol. 24. 
 
 Nugx Antique. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 O 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 98 
 
 effigy of Bishop Robert Crichton, who had been in exile with 
 King Charles II. at the Hague, as one of the chaplains to his 
 majesty. He died on the 21st of November, 1672, set. 78. On his 
 monument are the arms of the see of Wells combined with those of 
 Bath. The arras now used by the bishops of Bath and Wells, it is 
 needless to say, are the arms of the see of Wells alone. Near this 
 monument is an altar tomb, with a cumbent figure of a priest 
 represented in his canonicals, said to be in memory of Dean Forest, 
 who died in 1446 ; and some mural tablets of members of the 
 Brydges family, formerly of Wells. 
 
 In that part of the small southern transept called St. Katherine’s 
 Chapel is a monument attributed to Bishop William Bitton, who 
 died in the year 1264, the first bishop of Wells of that name, and 
 is said to have been buried in the chapel of the Virgin Mary. His 
 tomb has since been removed, and to what part is doubtful. The 
 episcopal figure is much mutilated, but had formerly been painted.'* 
 
 Eastward of this ancient tomb, in the Lady Chapel, is a very 
 light and elegant specimen of monumental architecture, erected to 
 commemorate Bishop John Drokensford, keeper of the king’s ward- 
 robe and privy-seal, and under-treasurer of the royal exchequer. 
 This bishop of Wells died at Dogmersfield, in Hampshire, on the 
 13th of May, 1329. The altar tomb is surmounted by a canopy, 
 consisting of eight buttresses, carried up in small pinnacles, and 
 supporting intermediate highly pointed gables, the crocheted ridges 
 of which terminate in ornamental finials ; but there is neither effigy 
 nor inscription. Bishop Drokensford’s chantry was endowed in 
 the year 1328 with ten pounds, payable yearly to three chaplains, 
 out of the manor of Middleton and the church of Berrow, near 
 South Brent, in Somersetshire. 
 
 The windows of the Lady Chapel are of painted, or rather 
 stained glass, and produce a most beautiful effect when casting 
 their brilliant hues on the fine architectural forms in this part of 
 the Cathedral ; but through lapse of time, neglect, and spoliation, 
 the windows had become mutilated, and the pieces which composed 
 
 This bishop appears to have been not inattentive to the worldly interests of 
 his family, many of whom were in the church. William, his brother’s son, was made 
 archdeacon of Wells, and became afterwards bishop. Richard Bitton was precen- 
 or; Nicholas, the bishop’s brother, was treasurer; John Bitton, another hrothe r, 
 wag rector of Ashbury, in which he was succeeded by Thomas Bitton. There was also 
 Thomas Bitton, dean of Wells, who was appointed bishop of Exeter, in 1291, 
 
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WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 99 
 
 the lights have been so ill-assorted, apparently without attempt at 
 arrangement, that it is barely possible to describe or even trace 
 the subjects represented.*’ Painted windows were frequently 
 presented by wealthy and pious benefactors to Cathedrals and 
 other churches ; in the early ages this custom was very prevalent ; 
 the designs of the large windows very commonly exhibited pictorial 
 legends or histories of saints and martyrs, of which a very remark- 
 able specimen of beautiful execution remains in the windows at St. 
 Neot’s in Cornwall, and which were lately restored at considerable 
 expense by the patron of that church. It has been suggested 
 that the use of stained glass made the mullions essential in the 
 subdivision of the lights ; it is not improbable that it contributed to 
 multiply these ramifications, by which means the various stainings 
 were shown to better advantage, and diflferent stories and figures 
 would necessarily require separate compartments.*’ In the Lady 
 Chapel is an ancient reader’s desk, or lettern, as it was called from 
 the Latin word lectorium ; it is entirely of brass, and is tastefully 
 formed, having ornamental brackets to hold the lights.*’ 
 
 The conventual cloisters on the southern side of the church were 
 chiefly the work of Bishop Bubwith, who presided over the diocese 
 of Bath and Wells in the reigns of Henry IV., V., and VI. This 
 prelate, according to Leland’s account, in his Itinerary, made the 
 whole eastern part of the cloister, with a little chapel beneath, and 
 
 *5 In the windo-^rs were these arms, viz. 1. The see of "Wells; 2. The see or 
 priory of Bath ; 3. Both impaled after the union of the sees ; 4. The same, quarterly 5 
 5. The deanery of Wells; 6. Edward the Confessor; 7. France and England, 
 quarterly; 8. Bishop Harewell ; 9. Bishop Knight; 10. Bishop Beckingtjn; 11. 
 Skirlaw; 12. Lake; 13. Laud; 14. Pierce; 15. Cornish; 16. Swan; 17. Sugar; 
 18. Forest; with many others, now mostly defaced — CoUinson’s Sistory of SomersetMref 
 vol. iii. p. 401. 
 
 26 In a window of the chevet, behind the high altar of the Abbey of St, Denis, near 
 Paris, were formerly ten circular pieces of painted glass, representing the first Crusade, 
 put up at the expense of Abbot Sugar, prime minister of Louis VII., king of France, 
 contemporary with our kings Henry I. and Stephen of England, and in one there was 
 the portrait of the Abbot himself. They are all engraved in Montfaucon’s great work, 
 the “Monumens de la Monarchie Francoise,” published between the years 1729 and 
 1733, when they most probably were in existence, but they appear to have been des- 
 troyed during the great Revolution in France in 1790. 
 
 2’ The following extract from TindaVs History of the Abbey of Evesham, will 
 explain the use of the lettern at an early period ; — “ Thomas de Malberge, sacrist of the 
 abbey, during the time of King Henry III., made a reading desk, about the year 1216, 
 behind the choir, which the church had not before, and appointed stated readings to 
 be held near the tomb of St. Wilsius.” 
 
100 
 
 WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 a great library over it, having twenty-five windows on each side. 
 The western side of the cloisters was erected at the expense of the 
 munificent Beckington, together with what, in the language of that 
 time, was a goodly school, the schoolmaster’s lodgings, and an 
 exchequer over it, having twenty-five windows towards the area. 
 The same prelate also began to build the southern side of the 
 cloisters, but Thomas Henry, who was treasurer of Wells and 
 archdeacon of Cornwall, finished the structure, strictly adhering to 
 the style and execution of the original work. The northern side is 
 bounded by the southern wall of the church, and there is no am- 
 bulatory or other building on that side. Towards the area the 
 arches of the cloister are supported by a series of graduated 
 buttresses, between every two of which is a mullioned window, the 
 tracery of which is disposed with taste. In the central area is the 
 ancient lavatory, or bath of the monks, a fine specimen of one of the 
 accommodations of conventual arrangement ; the water is walled 
 round, but it is open at the top, and a pointed archway door affords 
 admittance to a descent to three or four steps ; on one side is a square 
 recess or ambrey, for keeping the linen used in washing, and the 
 water is constantly running under an arch at the farthest end, whence 
 it afterwards passes through the city.*® 
 
 Over the eastern cloister and communicating with the southern 
 transept by a staircase in the buttress is a long room, forming an 
 ante-room to the library, one of the most ancient book rooms in the 
 kingdom ; it is well garnished with old folios, chiefly, it is believed, 
 on divinity : the cases are all coeval with the room, and are exceed- 
 ingly curious, although rude in their construction.” 
 
 In the northern aisle of the choir, immediately eastward of the 
 transept, is an entrance to an arcade leading to the crypt of the 
 
 28 There is an etching of this very curious, and it is believed, unique accompani- 
 ment to the conventual cloister in Carter's Ancient Architecture of England. 
 
 29 Every monastery in the kingdom had such an apartment, called a scriptorum, 
 where their music and their missals were multiplied by means of copying, a practice 
 of very ancient use. It is stated that Alexander, bishop of Jerusalem, in the early 
 part of the third century after Christ, built a library there, for the purpose of pre- 
 serving the epistles of learned ecclesiastics, written one to another, and also their 
 commentaries on the Holy Scriptures. Origen, an illustrious father of the church, 
 was assisted in writing his admirable works by more than seven notaries appointed for 
 his use, who, every one in his turn, wrote that which he uttered, and as many more 
 scriveners, together with maidens, well exercised and practised in penning, who were 
 to write copies. — Savage’s Librarian, 
 

 I 
 
 
 
 ^ I,'. 
 
7 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 101 
 
 chapter house:®" this part of the Cathedral, it is generally stated, 
 was erected in the time of Bishop de la March, a great favourite with 
 King Edward I., who was treasurer of England at the time of his 
 appointment to this see, in the year 1293. The chapter house is 
 octangular upon the plan, and is about fifty-three feet in diameter. 
 At the angles are elegantly-formed buttresses, presenting a salient 
 angle, instead of the usual flat surface in front, and perforated for 
 water spouts, which are conducted through the open mouths of 
 lions, and are terminated with crocheted pinnacles ; the whole 
 space between each support of the structure, excepting on the side 
 next to the church, being occupied by large and beautiful mullioned 
 windows admitting vast light into the interior. An open parapet 
 surrounds the upper part. 
 
 The ancient sacristy or crypt, an arched room forming the base- 
 ment of the chapter house, is exceedingly curious in its architectural 
 detail ; the vaulting is about fifteen feet in height. The immense 
 groins or ribs of the arches all verge towards a central octagonal 
 pier, to which, on its several faces, are attached slender cylindrical 
 shafts, having very large capitals and bases. From these shafts 
 the ribs take their spring, and centre in eight other pillars of a 
 massive character, with large moulded capitals, hence the arches, 
 all of the pointed style, are carried to small shafts connected with 
 the outer walls of the edifice ; the effect of this disposition of the 
 pillars in the vaulting produces a great variety of perspective and a 
 pleasing degree of intricacy in the view from any part of the room. 
 
 In this crypt or sacristy is a very curious old record chest of 
 oak, strongly bound with iron ; and formerly there hung from the 
 ceiling a very singular and ancient wooden lantern, which has been 
 removed to the bishop’s palace. 
 
 One of the peculiarities of Wells Cathedral is the approach to 
 the chapter room, immediately above the crypt, and the floor of 
 which is about twenty feet above the pavement in the northern 
 aisle of the church. The access is accomplished by a noble flight 
 of stone steps of considerable width, which after being turned 
 eastward towards the chapter room, are continued up to the still 
 higher level of the glazed loft or gallery of communication with the 
 
 3“ The usual approach to the conventual chapter house was from the cloisters. "Wells 
 is believed to afford a singular instance of deviation from that arrangement. 
 
'rt^ELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 101 
 
 chapter house : this part of the Cathedral, it is generally stated, 
 ■\7as erected in the time of Bishop de la March, a great favourite with 
 King Edward I,, who was treasurer of England at the time of his 
 appointment to this see, in the year 1293. The chapter house is 
 octangular upon the plan, and is about fifty-three feet in diameter. 
 At the angles are elegantly-formed buttresses, presenting a salient 
 angle, instead of the usual flat surface in front, and perforated for 
 water spouts, which are conducted through the open mouths of 
 lions, and are terminated with crocheted pinnacles ; the whole 
 space between each support of the structure, excepting on the side 
 next to the church, being occupied by large and beautiful mullioned 
 windows admitting vast light into the interior, An open parapet 
 surrounds the upper part. 
 
 The ancient sacristy or crypt, an arched room forming the base- 
 ment of the chapter house, is exceedingly curious in its architectural 
 detail ; the vaulting is about fifteen feet in height. The immense 
 groins or ribs of the arches all verge towards a central octagonal 
 pier, to which, on its several faces, are attached slender cylindrical 
 shafts, having very large capitals and bases. From these shafts 
 the ribs take their spring, and centre in eight other pillars of a 
 massive character, with large moulded capitals, hence the arches, 
 all of the pointed style, are carried to small shafts connected with 
 the outer walls of the edifice ; the effect of this disposition of the 
 pillars in the vaulting produces a great variety of perspective and a 
 pleasing degree of intricacy in the view from any part of the room. 
 
 In this crypt or sacristy is a very curious old record chest of 
 oak, strongly bound with iron ; and formerly there hung from the 
 ceiling a very singular and ancient wooden lantern, which has been 
 removed to the bishop’s palace. 
 
 One of the peculiarities of Wells Cathedral is the approach to 
 the chapter room, immediately above the crypt, and the floor of 
 which is about twenty feet above the pavement in the northern 
 aisle of the church. The access is accomplished by a noble flight 
 of stone steps of considerable width, which after being turned 
 eastward towards the chapter room, are continued up to the still 
 higher level of the glazed loft or gallery of communication with the 
 
 s® The usual approach to the conventual chapter house was from the cloisters. "Wells 
 is believed to afford a singular instance of deviation from that arrangement. 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 m 
 
 vicars close, a building which occupies a large space of ground on 
 the northern side of the Cathedral, and was built for the accom- 
 modation of the choral members of the church.®* 
 
 There is scarcely any edifice of the kind in the whole kingdom 
 more Avorthy of attention than the chapter house of Wells.®* 
 The octagonal form which has been adopted for the ground plan 
 is extremely beautiful, and its elaborate style of decoration is no 
 less calculated to display its architectural design to the greatest 
 advantage. This building, the Avork of an architect of high and 
 cultivated taste, appears to have been commenced in the reign of 
 Edward' I. According to Bishop GodAvyn,®® the chapter house, 
 denominated a “ stately and sumptuous Avork,” was built in the 
 time of Bishop de la March, treasurer of England, in that king’s 
 reign ; but the expense, we are informed, was defrayed by the 
 contributions of Avell-disposed people. Its erection was most 
 probably carried on during the succeeding reigns of Edward II. 
 and Edward III., but there is no record which evinces the date of 
 its completion. The earlier style of architecture is most con- 
 spicuous in the crypt or sacristy, beneath the magnificent chapter 
 room ; the insulated cluster of shafts, in the centre of the chamber, 
 rest on a broad plinth of solid masonry, and are about twenty feet 
 in height ; all the capitals of the pillars which form the cluster are 
 enriched with sculptured foliage in excellent taste. Hence the 
 numerous ribs of the groined ceiling take their spring, and diverge 
 into a variety of tracery, the creation of a richly furnished fancy. 
 These ribs are entirely carved into extremely light conjoined 
 mouldings, or members, which spread over the whole roof, pro- 
 ducing a delightful effect, and are ornamented at every transverse 
 intersection by a sculptured knot of wreathed leaves. The 
 
 Mr. Dallaway overlooked this instanee, when he says that the chapter houses aro 
 always appreached from the cloisters. — Discourses, p. 199, 
 
 32 The chapter house of Southwell Minster, in Nottinghamshire, is almost of 
 equal interest, and was erected about the same period. It is beautifully light 
 and graceful in its enrichments ; around this room are stalls for sixteen prebenda- 
 ries, and the prior of Thurgarton also claimed a right to a stall. Southwell Church 
 contains the monuments of five archbishops of York. The chapter houses at York, 
 Lincoln, and Salisbury, are all built upon the same octagonal plan as that of Wells, 
 but York is without the central pillar ; Lincoln is the largest, but was equalled in 
 size by that of Westminster. In the last the parliament of England frequently sat, 
 but it is now used for the deposition of public records, and is divided into two 
 stories. 
 
 22 Catalogue of the Bishops of England. 
 


 ITMlA-iLS 
 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 103 
 
 plinth or base of the outer walls is disposed in a continued seat 
 appropriated to a series of fifty-one stalls, respectively belonging 
 to the dean and prebendaries of the Cathedral, who constitute the 
 chapter of the bishop. The stone canopies of the stalls at the back 
 of the seat rise more than ten feet to the sill of the surrounding 
 windows, and the whole height of this beautiful room, from the 
 pavement to the soffit of the arch of the ceiling, is more than 
 forty feet. 
 
 The large windows of the chapter house are divided by mulllons 
 into four lights or openings of equal height, but without transoms 
 or cross divisions, and the headings of the pointed arches are 
 disposed in three circles of different sizes, the central circles being 
 much the largest. The light admitted by these ample windows was 
 doubtless originally tempered by variegated quarries of stained 
 glass, in very general use at the time of the completion of this 
 building. The grandeur of the room was necessarily increased in 
 proportion to the absence of glare, the stained glass of the windows 
 must have reflected a sombre lustre on the highly ornamental 
 arehitecture, while the various colours diffused over the room 
 formed a happy contrast with the gray tint of the walls, giving an 
 air of solemnity to its whole aspect. In its present state there are 
 few parts of the Cathedral arrangement that more foreibly interest 
 the visitor. 
 
 The viears close or college, northward of the chapter house, is 
 a connected range of building in perfect unison with the Cathedral, 
 surrounding a spacious court yard ; this edifice is remarkable as a 
 specimen of architectural taste, being extremely well adapted to 
 the character of its situation. At the southern end of the court, 
 nearest to the Cathedral, is a dining hall, with a buttery and other 
 conveniences suitable to the purposes of the college. The portal 
 or entrance into the close is upon the south, and at the northern 
 extremity of the court, is the usual appendage of a chapel, with a 
 small library over it, for the use of the vicars ; between these 
 two buildings, which are not without architectural decoration, are 
 twenty dwelling houses ranged on either side of the court, and 
 corresponding in style and character with the hall and chapel at 
 the extremities of the quadrangle. This close almost rivals the 
 celebrated foundation of Cardinal Beaufort, at the village of St. 
 
WELLS CATHEDRAL. 
 
 104 
 
 Cross, near the city of Winchester, or that of St. Katherine's 
 Hospital, founded by Eleanor of Provence, queen of Henry III. It 
 owes its institution and endowment to Walter de Hull, archdeacon 
 of Bath, and one of the canons of this Cathedral, who granted 
 messuages and land in the city of Wells for the purpose of pro- 
 viding a residence for thirteen chantry priests, who officiated in 
 the Cathedral. 
 
 For the better regulation of these chaplains. Bishop Shrewsbury, 
 in the year 1347, made certain statutes, and the very next year 
 proceeded with his improvement of the original plan by erecting 
 a new college for the better accommodation of the vicars and 
 choristers, adding considerably at the same time to its endowments. 
 
 The vicars choral, in this church, were first appointed in the 
 year 1237 by Bishop Joceline de Wells, who ordained one to 
 every canon or prebendary, to supply their turns in chanting and 
 celebrating divine service. 
 
 The vicars college or close of the vicars choral of this 
 Cathedral was afterwards much augmented by Bishop Beckington, 
 who is sometimes called the founder. At the Reformation this 
 institution escaped in a great measure the general suppression of 
 religious societies ; Queen Elizabeth, in 1591, refounded it, and 
 by charter appointed the number of members to be not less 
 than fourteen, nor more than twenty ; but the institution has been 
 much injured and diverted from its original purpose. Upon the 
 wall, over a door leading to the hall steps, was formerly a picture 
 representing the vicars kneeling before the bishop, and addressing 
 him in that humble posture. The vicars, after their re-establish- 
 ment by Queen Elizabeth, placed another picture in their dining 
 hall, commemorative of the enlarger and refounder of their college. 
 In the windows of this hall is yet remaining the name of Pomroy, 
 one of the benefactors to the college j and on the mantle-piece of 
 the same room is a carved scroll, bearing this inscription : — ■ 
 
 In btstn's . prcctbus . baheatis . commtnljatum . Bommum . S^li'cum ; 
 ^omrop . qunn . salbtt . iBcus. ^mcn. 
 
 On the houses are the arms of the see of Bath and Wells, the 
 arms and device of Bishop Beckington, and those of his three 
 executors, Hugh Sugar, his chancellor, John Pope, a canon, and 
 Richard Svvan, provost of the church of Wells. 
 
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ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL, 
 
 The diocese of Rochester, the smallest of any in England, is 
 situated in the western division of the county of Kent, and is 
 separated from that of Canterbury chiefly by the Medway ; but 
 there are several parishes belonging to this see eastward of that 
 river, its natural boundary being the Theyse or Teise, a small 
 stream, which, after taking its course through the villages of Hun- 
 ton and Gillingham, falls into the Medway at Yalding. A bishopric, 
 with a college of secular priests, was founded at Rochester in the 
 reign of Ethelbert, the Anglo-Saxon king of Kent, soon after 
 Augustine the monk had landed in the isle of Thane t, and preached 
 the gospel at Canterbury. The college was endowed with land, 
 southward of the city, appropriately named Priestfleld, but its 
 revenue was small. A church was begun to be erected, A. D. 600, 
 and was finished four years afterwards, when it was dedicated to 
 the honour of God and the Apostle St. Andrew.' Rochester was 
 almost destroyed in the year 676 by Ethelbert, king of Mercia, 
 and the city suffered greatly during the invasions of England by 
 the Danes in the ninth century ; but it appears to have recovered 
 its importance in the reign of Athelstan, when there were three 
 mint masters, two who superintended the king’s coinage, and one 
 who superintended that of the bishop. 
 
 The Cathedral Church, which was one of the earliest built in 
 England after the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons, had become 
 dilapidated in the reign of William the Conqueror.* 
 
 ' King Ethelbert’s church was dedicated to St. Andrew, out of respect to 
 the monastery of St. Andrew, at Rome, whence Augustine and the other monks were 
 sent hy Pope Gregory to convert the Anglo-Saxons. See page 17 ante. St. Andrew 
 suffered martyrdom, A.D. 69, at Patrae, in Achaia, by having been fastened with cords 
 to a cross, composed of two pieces of timber crossing each other, in the form of the 
 letter X. The relics of the Apostle were carried to Scotland by St, Rule, A.D. 369, and 
 were deposited in a church built in honour of him where now the city of St. Andrew 
 stands, and part of the cross was carried to Brussels by Philip the Good, who, in honour 
 of it, instituted the order of the Golden Fleece, which bears for a badge St. Andrew’s 
 cross, or the cross of Burgundy. 
 
 Agreeably to received usage, William of Normandy is called the Conqueror, but it 
 8 believed there is not a single instance in the whole of Doomsday Boob, one of the 
 principal records of England, to sanction such a title. It is there uniformly stated 
 Fast quam Rex venit in Angliam — since the king arrived in England— see Henehall’s 
 Doomsday, 4to, 1799. 
 
 VOL. I. r 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 106 
 
 Gundulf, a monk of the royal abbey of Bee, near Rouen in 
 Normandy, was consecrated bishop of Rochester, by Lanfranc, 
 archbishop of Canterbury, on March 19, 1077. He was a prelate, 
 not so much distinguished for his eminence in learning, as for his 
 remarkable industry and unwearied zeal in promoting the interest 
 of the church. Bishop Gundulf removed the secular canons from 
 the priory of St. Andrew, and replaced them with monks of the 
 Benedictine order. He at the same time conveyed to them part of 
 the estates belonging to the see. Out of these manors the bishop 
 reserved to himself and his successors a right to certain articles of 
 provision, to be delivered annually at the bishop’s palace, on the 
 festival of St. Andrew, under the name of xenium, or a token of 
 hospitality.^ The claims of the bishops to the xenium were often 
 contested by the monks, and afterwards the bishops consented to 
 receive a composition in money instead of the provisions in kind, 
 the corn being always estimated at the current price. 
 
 Bishop Gundulf, by the assistance of his patron. Archbishop 
 Lanfranc, acquired money enough to rebuild his Cathedral Church 
 and enlarge the priory, and, although he did not live to complete 
 the entire work he had undertaken, he laid the foundation of the 
 future prosperity of his see. 
 
 The present church, like most of the very ancient ecclesiastical 
 edifices, is in its plan an improvement on the Basilicas of Rome, 
 and is built in the real form of the cross of Christ, with a massive 
 square tower at the point of intersection.* 
 
 The interior space westward of the cross, on the plan, was the 
 
 ® The record is printed in Eegistrum Eoffense, a collection of ancient charters neces- 
 sary for illustrating the ecclesiastical history and antiquities of the Diocese and Cathe- 
 dral Church of Eochester, by John Thorpe, London, 1769, fol. 
 
 * Mr. Ilope, in chapter 22 of his elegant work on architecture, has denominated our 
 early architecture Lombard, as expressing the place in which this system of Latin church 
 architecture was first matured. He adopts it in preference not only to that of Saxon, 
 first given to it in England, but equally in preference to that of Norman, subsequently 
 conferred upon it, which only describes the least and most circumscribed continental 
 province whence this architecture was more proximately wafted to the British shore. 
 In Lombardy, says Mr. Hope, the crossing of the nave and transepts generally rises 
 into an octagonal cupola ; this we see likewise in France and Germany. In Englaid, 
 the ihurch built in the seventh century by St. "Wilfrid, at Hexham in Northumberland, 
 is described by Eichard, its prior, as being furnished with a round tower or cupola, 
 from which proceeded four aisles; and West Dcroham Church, in Norfolk, still offers 
 an octagonal tower or cupola. 
 

 
 
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 HKiniRENCE 
 
 A . Noi'e ami tiisles 
 is -Western Trxinsrpt 
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 V^— Chancel 
 E. Eastern Trtuutept 
 V —Chapel used as the Consistory Court 
 Ge—S^BdmzLnds Chapel 
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 SC 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 107 
 
 nave, or body of the church, which, by the apostolical constitutions, 
 represented the ship of St. Peter, and preserved its name.^ This 
 part of our Cathedral Churches seldom fails to produce a sublime 
 effect by the simple grandeur of its outline and general amplitude 
 of dimensions ; the space eastward of the cross, called the choir, in 
 allusion to the choral service performed in it, is in the earliest edifices 
 disproportionately short. The transept, a part of the church shorter 
 than the nave, and running north and south on the plan, is fre- 
 quently called the cross ; it will be observed that the choir does not 
 extend to the outer walls, but is situated between the piers, and the 
 aisles serve as passages to the Lady Chapel, almost always erected 
 eastward of the high altar. The aisles of the transept are generally 
 separated into distinct chapels by ornamental screens. The prin- 
 cipal part of the nave of Rochester Cathedral, an interesting speci- 
 men of Anglo-Norman architecture, is supposed to have been built 
 by Bishop Gundulf, one of the most celebrated men of his time j 
 amongst the prelates of the early Norman reigns were many pos- 
 sessed of consummate skill in architecture, which, aided by their 
 munificence, was applied to the rebuilding of their Cathedral 
 Churches.® The nave of Rochester is more ancient than that of 
 any Cathedral in the kingdom, and still retains most of the peculiar 
 features of the style in which it was originally built. The alter- 
 ations by which the appearance has been most affected are the 
 enlarging of the western window and the raising of the roof.^ 
 
 Bishop Gundulf removed the remains of his predecessors who 
 had been buried in the old church into some part of his new fabric, 
 which he caused to be completed for that purpose. He enclosed 
 
 ® Hope’s Historical Essay on ArcWtecture, 1835, p. 88. 
 
 * No less a number than fifteen of the English Cathedrals still retain considerable 
 parts, which are undoubtedly of Norman erection, the several dates of which are ascer- 
 tained. With equal extent and magnificence many of the churches belonging to the 
 greater abbeys were constructed in this era. Few indeed have escaped their general 
 demolition at the Reformation. — Dallaway’ s Discourses on Architecture, pp. 32 and 35. 
 
 ? Bishop Gundulf’s chapel, in the white tower of London, aflbrds perhaps the only 
 instance of an Anglo-Norman building covered by the original vaulting. This chapel, 
 fifty feet by forty in dimension, with aisles separated by an arcade, occupies the entire 
 space from the second floor to the roof ; the vaulting of its centre is semicircular, coved 
 at the eastern end, but the impress of the frame-work or centering was either carefully 
 avoided in the erection or was afterwards chiselled or rubbed down. This chapel, one 
 of the finest and most perfect specimens of the Norman style of architecture now ex- 
 tant in this country, was dedicated to St. John the Evangelist, and is now used as a 
 record office. 
 
108 
 
 EOCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 the remains of Paulinus, the third bishop of this see, for whom he 
 procured canonization, in a shrine of silver, at the expense of 
 Archbishop Lanfranc : the number of rich offerings subsequently 
 made at this shrine proved a fund of wealth to the church and 
 monastery. St, Ithamar, the first English bishop of this see, died 
 A.D. 655 : his remains were afterwards enshrined in the new 
 church by Bishop John, about the year 1130, and the priory con- 
 tained a legend of his miracles. 
 
 Gundulf exchanged with Odo, bishop of Bayeaux and earl of 
 Kent, some church land for three acres without the southern wall 
 of the city of Bochester. Earl Odo is also said to have granted to 
 the monks ground for a vineyard, the same which is now called 
 “ The Vines.” By several charters it appears that the monks had 
 a vineyard thereabouts.® 
 
 King William the Conqueror, at his death, is said to have given 
 one hundred pounds and his royal robe to the Cathedral Church 
 of Bochester as a proof of his regard for Bishop Gundulf, who, 
 being of great celebrity as an architect, had been employed by the 
 king in directing the buildings in the tower of London. 
 
 When King William Bufus ascended the throne. Bishop Gun- 
 dulf obtained several grants in favour of the church of Bochester, 
 and from that king’s successor, Henry I., he procured many privi- 
 leges for the monks of St. Andrew’s priory. In the grant of a fair 
 to the city, held on the festival of St. Paulinus, the monks had per- 
 mission to vend their merchandize after the king and his servants. 
 
 Amongst other munificent acts. Bishop Gundulf founded an 
 hospital at Chatham, dedicated to St. Bartholomew, an endowment 
 still existing under the patronage of the dean and chapter of the 
 Cathedral. He also founded and endowed a nunnery at Mailing, 
 near Maidstone, the remains of which building attest its Anglo- 
 Norman origin. The bishop also repaired the castle- walls of 
 
 ® In some of the old leases there is mention of considerable quantities of blackberries 
 delivered by the tenants of the bishop, wbicb were used to colour the wine made from 
 grapes growing in this vineyard. In parts of the weald of Kent the vine still grows 
 wild in the hedges, and evidence of the vine having formerly flourished in England, is 
 found in many names of places, as the Vineyard, near Gloucester, and the Vineyard, in 
 Herefordshire, although it has been maintained that the vineyards of England were the 
 apple orchards, and the wine, cider. The whole process of planting, pruning, stamping 
 and pressing of vines, was represented in an ancient stained glass window, formerly in 
 a bouse at Chilwell, near Nottingham. 
 
 I 
 
 
 
KOCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 
 109 
 
 Rochester and founded the tower which bears his name, one of the 
 finest remains of antiquity in the kingdom. From a comparison of 
 this tower and the keep of the tower of London, also built by him, 
 with those of earlier construction, Gundulf is considered to have 
 invented that description of castle architecture in which the lofty 
 artificial mound was not deemed essential. The towers erected by 
 Gundulf are very lofty, and contain four separate fioors, the portal 
 or entrance being many feet above the ground. His great merit 
 consisted in various architectural stratagems, by which as much, 
 security was given to his towers as by real strength.® 
 
 Rochester castle is interesting from its extent and the great 
 preservation of its walls, the masonry of which is very good. King 
 James I., in the year 1610, granted this castle to Sir Anthony 
 Weldon, of Swanscombe, whose descendants have demolished the 
 interior for the sake of the timber, but the walls defy destruction. 
 
 Bishop Gundulf, after having held the see of Rochester thirty- 
 two years, during the reigns of William I. and II. and Henry I., 
 died on the 7th of March, 1107, and was buried before the high 
 altar in his own Cathedral. 
 
 Radulf, his successor, being appointed archbishop of Canterbury 
 in 1114, Ernulf, abbot of Peterborough, was advanced to the see 
 of Rochester. This bishop also was an architect, and erected the 
 chapter houses both of Peterborough and Rochester. He was a 
 great benefactor to the priory of St. Andrew, and built the refectory 
 and dormitory of the convent. Bishop Ernulf is supposed to have 
 been the author of Textus Roffensis,” a manuscript relating to 
 the early history of his Cathedral. He died in the year 1124. 
 
 The Cathedral of Rochester was entirely completed during the 
 prelacy of his successor John, archdeacon of Canterbury, who was 
 advanced to this see in 1125. The dedication of the church was 
 celebrated on Ascension Day, the 7th of May, 1130, in the presence 
 of King Henry I., many of the nobility and principal dignitaries of 
 the church, including the archbishop of Canterbury, eleven English 
 and two Norman bishops.'® During the ceremony a dreadful fire 
 
 ® Rickman’s Discrimination of Styles in Architecture, p. 187, and Dallaway’s 
 Discourses, p. 274. 
 
 Bishop John, who built the church of Frindsbury, about two miles northward 
 from this city, granted it to the Cathedral, for the purpose of supplying the wax tapers, 
 which burnt continually on the high altar. 
 
110 
 
 ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL 
 
 broke out in the city, and the new church was seriously damaged. 
 A similar fate befell it in the year 1137, and again in 1379. 
 
 In the year 1185, the thirty-second of the reign of Henry IIL, 
 Gilbert Glanville, who had been archdeacon of Liseux, in Nor- 
 mandy, was appointed bishop of Hochester. He was a patron of 
 architecture, and besides building the palace, he rebuilt the cloisters 
 of the monks with stone, and provided an organ for the church. 
 The bishop, in 1197, exchanged Lambeth, in Surrey, then the pro- 
 perty of this see, with Hubert Walter, archbishop of Canterbury, 
 reserving out of the exchange a part of the land, on which he erected 
 Rochester-place, a mansion fit for the reception of the bishops of 
 Rochester whenever they came to attend parliament.^ 
 
 Bishop Glanville for many years was involved in a controversy 
 with the prior and monks of the convent, and during this period, it 
 is stated, that the silver plates covering the shrine of St. Paulinus 
 were converted by the monks into money; they were, however, at 
 last compelled to submit to their diocesan. These disputes con- 
 siderably retarded the progress of the reconstruction of those parts 
 of the Cathedral Church which had been destroyed by the fire. 
 
 The choir rebuilt under the direction of William de Hoo the 
 sacrist, was first used at the consecration of Bishop Sandford, on 
 the 9th ofMay, 1227. All the eastern part of the church is recorded 
 to have been rebuilt with the large gifts bestowed at the shrine of 
 St. William of Perth, an alleged martyr, whose canonization was 
 procured by Bishop Lawrence de St. Martin ; his body was then 
 removed from the choir, where it had been originally buried, to the 
 northern transept, and a rich shrine erected to his memory. This 
 device procured a fund of wealth to the church, which continued 
 productive for almost three hundred years. 
 
 Hamo de Hythe, prior of the convent of St. Andrew, who had 
 been chaplain to his predecessor. Bishop Woldam, was appointed 
 bishop of Rochester in the year 1316, but he was obliged to wait 
 two years and a half before his consecration, which was not performed 
 till 1319. This prelate was confessor to king Edward IL, and a 
 
 Stangate stairs, at Lambeth, were constructed by Bishop Shepey, in 1357, for the 
 convenience of himself and retinue in crossing the Thames to Westminster. The last 
 bishops of Rochester who resided at Lambeth, were Bishops Fisher and Hilsley. The 
 palace afterwards fell into the hands of King Henry VIIL, who exchanged it with the 
 bishop of Carlisle for certain houses in the Strand. 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Ill 
 
 very great benefactor to the Cathedral. In the year 1343, in con- 
 junction with Prior Shepey, who was afterwards bishop, he caused 
 the massive central tower of the church to be raised higher and 
 covered with lead. Four new bells were at the same time placed 
 in the tower, which were named Dunstan, Paulin, Ithamar, and 
 Lanfranc. Bishop Hamo de Hythe also rebuilt the shrines of St. 
 Michael, St. Paul, and St. Ithamar, of marble and alabaster, to 
 contain their sacred relics ; and presented to the church a magni- 
 ficent mitre, which had once belonged to Archbishop a Beckett. 
 He rebuilt the refectory of the convent, and a mansion at Trottes- 
 cliff, or Trosley, one of the bishop’s palaces near Maidstone. The 
 great hall of the episcopal palace at Hailing was also erected by 
 Bishop Hamo de Hythe.'^ 
 
 In the year 1326, as King Edward II. was returning from Leeds 
 castle, then the seat of Lord Badlesmere, steward of the royal 
 household, he was met by the bishop of Rochester, near Boxley, 
 who, after attending the king to his palace at Rochester, conducted 
 the sovereign part of the way towards Gravesend. 
 
 At the dissolution of religious houses, the priory of St. Andrew, 
 at Rochester, was surrendered in 1542 to the king; and by a new 
 charter, granted in June, 1542, the church, with part of the estates 
 of the dissolved priory and other possessions, were vested for ever 
 in a new establishment, consisting of a dean, six prebendaries, six 
 minor canons, a deacon, sub-deacon, six lay clerks, eight choristers, 
 with a master and grammar master, twenty scholars, two subsacrists, 
 and six bedesmen. The last prior, Walter de Boxley, was appointed 
 the first dean after the granting of the charter. 
 
 The precincts of the Cathedral appear to have formerly occupied 
 nearly half the area within the walls of the city. There were three 
 gates leading into this liberty ; the cemetery gate which opened 
 from the Market Cross upon the western front of the church ; St. 
 William’s gate led from the High-street to the porch on the 
 northern front of the transept; and the prior’s gate towards the 
 vineyard, on the southern side of the church. The only part of 
 the conventual buildings now remaining are the porter’s lodge, and 
 fragments of walls wrought up in other edifices. The site of the 
 bishop’s palace, which had been rebuilt by Bishop Lowe, in the 
 
 A gatehouse and considerable remains of the hall and chapel are yet standing; 
 it is situated on the banks of the Medway, about four miles from Rochester. 
 
EOCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 112 
 
 year 1459, is now occupied by a row of houses. The deanery is 
 situated where the prior’s lodging formerly stood, with its gardens 
 extending south-eastward. 
 
 The Cathedral of Rochester, like every other in the kingdom, 
 suffered much injury at the time of the Reformation, in consequence 
 of the rage which then prevailed for destroying everything deco- 
 rated with a cross. To such an extent was it carried that Queen 
 Elizabeth, in the second year of her reign, found it necessary to 
 issue a proclamation against persons guilty of the offence, and to 
 give greater weight to her determination, signed each copy with 
 her own autograph.*® 
 
 The fury of the popular party during the civil war, was extended 
 to this Cathedral, although it certainly suffered less from their 
 unreasonable bigotry, than some other sacred edifices.** The altar 
 was then removed into a lower part of the church, and its enclosure 
 broken down. 
 
 The choir was repaired in the year 1743, at which time the 
 pavement was relaid with Bremen and Portland stone alternately 
 disposed. The stalls for the dean and prebendaries were recon- 
 structed, and the bishop’s throne was erected at the expense of 
 Bishop Wilcocks, who had been one of the chaplains in ordinary of 
 King George I., and preceptor to the young princesses, daughters 
 of the prince of Wales, afterwards King George II.*® An exten- 
 sive repair was commenced in the year 1827, and conducted under 
 the direction of Mr. Cottingham, from funds supplied wholly by 
 the dean and chapter ; a more careful and attentive architect could 
 not have been selected, as the result has amply proved in a more 
 correct restoration of the architectural peculiarities of this very 
 ancient Cathedral than is usually exhibited. 
 
 13 Fuller’s Church History, book ix. p. 66. 
 
 1* The Lords and Commons ordained that in all churches anJ chapels the altar 
 tables of stone should, before the 1st of November, 1643, be utterly taken away and 
 demolished, and that all rails which had been erected before any altar should be taken 
 away. They also ordered that all tapers, candlesticks, and basins be removed, and all 
 crucifixes, crosses, images, and pictures of any one or more persons of the sanctity or of 
 the Virgin Mary, and all images or pictures of saints or superstitious inscriptions 
 should be taken away and defaced. Visitors were at the same time appointed under a 
 warrant from the Earl of Manchester for demolishing superstitious ornaments. 
 
 3* He was also dean of "Westminster, and in his time the western front of the abbey 
 church of Westminster was restored and the towers completed, from designs by Sir 
 Christopher Wren. 
 
r 
 
 '.VI ST DOI) 
 
 U WAY 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 113 
 
 The church stands at a short distance southward from the High- 
 street of Rochester, and eastward from the ancient castle ; the walls 
 of the Cathedral precinct running parallel with the castle ditch. It 
 is a building which exhibits specimens of architecture of four dis- 
 tinct eras ; the nave and western front were chiefly the work of the 
 Norman Bishop Gundulf, as well as a massive bell tower, which 
 stands between the transepts on the northern side, and bears his 
 name. The northern side of the western transept was built by the 
 monks Richard de Eastgate and Thomas de Meopham, subsequent 
 to the fire which happened in the year 1179 ; and the southern side 
 by the monk Richard de Walden, about the year 1200. The choir 
 and eastern transept were erected in the reign of Henry III. by 
 William Hoo, sacrist of the church, with the produce of ofi’erings 
 made at the shrine of Saint William. 
 
 The western front of the Cathedral, one of the most perfect 
 specimens of early Anglo-Norman architecture, was constructed 
 with consummate ability at a period when the art had arrived 
 at a high point of perfection. The central doorway is forined 
 by a very beautifully recessed semicircular arch, composed of 
 enriched moulding, and supported by four pillars, the capitals 
 of which consist of wreathed foliage, with birds and animals intro- 
 duced.*® The pillars are annulated, or encircled by ornamental 
 bands, and rise from a plain plinth, which has possibly been 
 constructed in the room of an enriched base which had become de- 
 cayed. Two of the pillars take the form of caryatides, and present 
 statues of King Henry I. and his Queen Matilda, the daughter of 
 Malcolm HI., king of Scotland, without question two of the most 
 ancient statues remaining in England. The figure of the king holds 
 a sceptre in his right hand, and in his left a book. The queen is 
 represented holding a scroll, typical of the grants made to the priory 
 
 16 The capitals of the pillars of the Lombardic style were in general compositions of 
 scrolls and foliage differing from and much less bold than those of the ancients, or were 
 combinations of animals and human beings, sometimes simply imitated from Nature, 
 in other instances monsters and grotesque. Of the grotesque sort many curious speci- 
 mens are enumerated in Hope’s “ Historical Essay on Architecture,” as existing in 
 Italy, France, and Germany. In England the most remarkable are those in the under- 
 croft of the Cathedral of Canterbury, and in St. Grymbald’s crypt, at Oxford. Behind 
 the altar of Eomsey church, in Hampshire, are several pillars with sculptured capitals, 
 two of which are historical, and record on scrolls the name of the architect, ROBERT. 
 ME FECIT. These last mentioned capitals are described in the “ Archcelogia.” vols. 
 xiy, and xv. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 Q 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 114 
 
 by those sovereigns. All the mouldings of the arch are highly 
 enriched with sculpture, representing arabesques, medallions of 
 heads and animals, with foliage intermixed. The lintel, across the 
 imposts of the doorway, bears a representation of the twelve 
 Apostles ; and in the tympan above is a fine bas relief, in the early 
 Greek style, of Jesus Christ holding a book, and in the act of giving 
 the benediction. Such figures were anciently placed on the porch 
 or entrance of the church as a security against the influence of evil 
 spirits. The centre compartment of the tympan, which is of oval 
 form, bearing the figure of Christ, is supported by cherubim and 
 seraphim, and the four symbols of the Evangelists are disposed 
 round this medallion. 
 
 Other remains of this very ancient front consists of arcades pre- 
 senting peculiar enrichment in the instance of the semicircular heads 
 of the arches, which are sculptured lozenge-wise, an ornament 
 noticed by Chaucer, as “ hacking in masonries the small pillars 
 also exhibit a vast variety of design in the capitals.*'' 
 
 Originally, it appears, there were four octagonal towers upon 
 this front, ^\hich rose above the roof to the height of two stories, 
 enriched with arcades in several courses, and terminated by pin- 
 nacles ; these have been rebuilt, or partially removed, with the 
 exception of one of the southern towers nearest the centre. On the 
 front of the northern tower is a statue of Gundulf, the founder, but 
 much mutilated. 
 
 The large window, which occupies the whole space between the 
 central towers, was inserted about the time of Henry IV., or per- 
 haps a little earlier. It is divided into two principal compartments. 
 
 One of the peculiarities of Anglo-Norman architecture is the covering the sur- 
 face of the walls with projecting ornaments of great diversity in the detail. Upon this 
 remarkable difference from the antique Mr. Hope has made some observations. The 
 severity of ancient arheitecture required that the two component sides of an entire 
 edifice, situated right and left of the common central point or line, should correspond 
 not only in the general dimensions but peculiar designs of their ornamental parts. If 
 there had been a thousand columns in a single row, each would have a capital and base 
 similar in its minutest embellishment to all the rest. The architects of the middle ages 
 were less strict; iasst re/f'ers inserted in different sides of a single front correspond not 
 even in size, seldom do they in subject; if one contains figures, that opposite perhaps 
 only displays foliage. In the same way the opposite shafts or jambs of the same porch 
 are often of a wholly different design ; and as to the capitals, when these are highly 
 wrought or with figures, it appears that making two alike would have been considered 
 as poverty of invention. — Hope’s Essay, p. 201 
 
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ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 115 
 
 each forming four lights^ having a main transom in the centre, and 
 another at the springing of the arch. The heading of the ■window 
 is distributed in minor lights or openings formed by sub-divisions. 
 Although a very fine window, its position is greatly to be lamented 
 as destroying the beautiful character of the architecture on the 
 western front ; most of the windows of the nave are of the same 
 date. Other parts of the church are so surrounded by buildings 
 that little more than one portion can be seen at a time ; they are 
 extremely plain and almost destitute of ornament. 
 
 On the northern side of the choir, close to the eastern side of 
 the transept, is a tower now unroofed, and called Gundulf’s Tower, 
 having usually been considered to have been built by that cele- 
 brated architect. The whole length of the Cathedral from east to west 
 is three hundred and six feet, the width of the western front is ninety- 
 four feet, and the height of the tower one hundred and fifty-six feet. 
 
 The earth has accumulated at the base of the western front so 
 as to cause a necessity for a descent of several steps into the 
 church at this entrance. The piers and arches of the nave are of 
 Anglo-Norman architecture, with the exception of those nearest 
 the transept ; the arches are enriched with chevron mouldings, 
 but the capitals of the pillars are plain, and the disposition of the 
 shafts on the massive piers are dissimilar, not any two on the same 
 side being exactly alike, although the opposite piers uniformly 
 correspond in their arrangements. 
 
 The triforium presents a series of arches enriched with chevron 
 and other mouldings of a similar description, and the face of the 
 wall is not without ornament ; above are the windows of the cle- 
 restory. A very fine open timber roof is supported on corbels 
 representing angels bearing shields of arms ; besides those of the 
 bishopric, the priory, and city of Eochester, are the arms of the 
 priory of Christchurch and of the archbishopric of Canterbury. 
 The alteration of Bishop Gundulf’s design by the introduction of 
 the present western window is clearly to be distinguished by the 
 abrupt termination of different arcades at the western end, some 
 having been divided through the very centre of the arch. 
 
 The two easternmost arches of the nave are in the pointed style 
 of architecture, and the central tower, which rises from the inter- 
 section of the nave and transept, is sustained by obtusely pointed 
 
116 
 
 ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 arclies rising from piers of solid masonry, environed by shafts of 
 Petworth marble, conneeted by fillets of the same material. A 
 spire, which had been erected in 1749, has been removed. 
 
 The western transept is erected in the pointed style of architec- 
 ture. At the northern end is a triforium, the lancet-formed win- 
 dows of which have each a screen in front, divided into three arches 
 of unequal height, supported by slender shafts of Petworth marble. 
 The vaulting of the transept is of stone, and groined. Many of 
 the smaller shafts and imposts of arches are supported by corbel 
 heads, chiefiy of ecclesiastics, not inelegantly sculptured. In the 
 eastern wall is a recess under a large pointed arch, within which 
 formerly stood an altar to St. Nicholas. The southern end of this 
 transept exceeds in lightness of style and enrichment that on the 
 north ; and the roof is of framed timber, in imitation of vaulting. On 
 the western side is the chapel of St. Mary, in which the consistory 
 court is now held ; and on the eastern side is the muniment room. 
 
 The whole length of the nave, which is so remarkable for its 
 antiquity, is one hundred and fifty feet, measuring from the western 
 porch to the steps of the choir, and in breadth between the pillars 
 thirty-three feet, and between the walls seventy-five feet.” 
 
 When the choir was rebuilt in 1227, it was extended to a greater 
 length by several feet than the nave itself : the length of the choir 
 is one hundred and fifty-six feet. The length of the western 
 transept is one hundred and twenty-two feet, and that of the eastern 
 ninety feet. 
 
 From the floor of the nave is an ascent of ten steps to the 
 choir ; the organ, which is placed over the screen, was built in 
 1792 by Green, and its case was designed by the Eev. — Ollive. 
 From the screen to the eastern extremity of the choir, the archi- 
 tectural style is uniform, consisting of two stories of pointed arches, 
 the lower rising from slender pillars of Petworth marble, with 
 plain capitals, and attached to solid piers by fillets. Above the 
 larger arches is a triforium, or gallery, extending round the whole 
 
 •® The length of the nave of Hereford Cathedral, also of Anglo-Norman architec- 
 ture, is one hundred and forty-four feet ; Gloucester is one hundred and seventy-four 
 feet in length ; while that of Durham, of magnificent proportion, and very bold in its 
 detail, is two hundred and sixty feet ; but the nave of Ely Cathedral, completed at a 
 very late period of the Anglo-Norman era, and of a very plain description, is no less than 
 three hundred and twenty-seven feet long, excelling that of every other Cathedral in its 
 extent. 
 
1 
 

 Bograrfd by 
 

KOCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 117 
 
 clioir and its transepts. All the windows, excepting those imme- 
 diately contiguous to the altar, consist of single lights of the lancet 
 form. The others, which are divided by mullions, were undoubtedly 
 once filled with stained glass, remains of which are still existing. 
 The eastern transept is divided into aisles; its extremities were 
 formerly shut out from the choir by screens, which were occasionally 
 hung with tapestry. The northern side of this transept is called the 
 chapel of St. William, from the shrine of the saint, which was here 
 deposited. The vaulting both of the choir and its transept is of 
 stone, the ribs springing from capitals of tall shafts of Petworth 
 marble. 
 
 The altar was originally placed at a distance from the eastern 
 wall, and its position is ascertained by a triple stone seat in the 
 southern wall under the third window. These stalls placed on the 
 southern side of altars were intended for a priest, deacon, and 
 sub-deacon, to sit in during the celebration of high mass.*® On the 
 front of this triple seat are the arms of the see of Rochester ; of the 
 priory of Christchurch, Canterbury; and of the priory of St. Andrew, 
 at Rochester. Beneath these shields were formerly representations 
 of three episcopal figures, and this inscription : — 
 
 © nltituho tu'fainaq sapiTncte et sciTncie 
 IDei Quam mtomprcSEitsihiHa sunt 
 gjutu'cia Ejus Et inPEStigaks btE Efus. 
 
 The crypt of this church is very spacious, extending under the 
 buildings of the choir eastward of the great transept, and was the 
 work of William de Hoo. There are remains of fresco painting in 
 that part of the crypt beneath St. William’s chapel. Within a 
 circle is a representation of a vessel sailing and a large fish in the 
 water below. Cn one side is a monk, with uplifted hands as if in 
 prayer ; under the whole is a shield of gold charged with an eagle 
 displayed, sable. 
 
 The entrance of the present chapter-house is near the southern 
 end of the eastern transept ; its pointed arched doorway presents 
 
 *0 By one of the constitutions of Archbishop Langton, made in 1222, every large 
 parish church is enjoined to have two or three priests, according to the extent of the 
 parish and state of the church, and three stalls on the southern side of the altar are not 
 uncommon in ancient churches. One of the most elegant of these triple stone seats, 
 formerly in the chancel of Chatham church, is engraved in the third volume of the 
 “VetustaMonumenta;” and there are four stalls in the church at Maidstone, and in 
 that of Cotterstock, in Northamptonshire. 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 118 
 
 the finest specimen of canopied niches, with effigies, to be seen in 
 England. The sculpture is very rich, and is continued from the 
 base in detached recesses rising above each other, and contains 
 figures, of which the lowermost are supposed to represent King 
 Henry I. and his queen Matilda. Above on each side are Bishops 
 Gundulf, Ernulf, Lawrence de St. Martin, and Hamo de Hythe, to 
 the last of which the erection of the doorway is attributed.*^ The 
 hollow moulding surrounding thesefiguresisperforated and entwined 
 with foliage. Over the effigies of the bishops are represented 
 cherubim and seraphim glorifying Christ, whose figure is sculptured 
 standing beneath a canopy on the apex of the arch. Branches of 
 foliage forming the outer mouldings appear to spring from piers 
 ornamented with graduated buttresses on the sides of the doorway. 
 
 A library is contained in cases on the northern side of the 
 chapter room. Amongst the manuscripts are “ Textus Boffensis,” 
 and the “ Costumale Roffense,” the last written chiefly by Prior 
 John Westerham, who died in the year 1320. It contains many 
 particulars relative to the ancient tenures, services, etc., of the 
 manors, within the diocese of Eochester, which belonged to the 
 priory of St. Andrew, together with the valuation of the Peter- 
 pence payable from Cathedral Churches in England to the popes. 
 
 The monuments of the bishops of Eochester now remaining in 
 this Cathedral are interesting from their antiquity as well as from 
 the style of execution. A very plain stone chest, on the southern 
 side of the choir, near the altar, is supposed to be the tomb of 
 Bishop Gundulf, who died in 1 107. 
 
 Westward from this is a monument of Bishop Ingle thorp, who 
 died in 1291. The cumbent figure of the bishop, and canopy under 
 which it reposes, are both cut out of a single block of Petworth 
 marble, highly polished ; the canopy is enriched with crockets, 
 
 21 Costumale Eofifense, p. 176. — There is also an engraving of this doorway in 
 “ Carter’s Specimens of Ancient Sculpture and Painting,” a work of admirable design, 
 tending to elucidate obscure and doubtful points of history, as well as to preserve por- 
 traits of eminent personages. 
 
 Sculptors from Italy are supposed to have traversed Europe at an early period in the 
 exercise of their art, and have brought it to this country, since an advance of excellence 
 in sculptured designs of this period is very perceptible ; and in the attitude of some of 
 the monumental effigies of the thirteenth century, which are conceived to have been 
 designed by or after these foreign artists, a graceful simplicity is preserved, and in the 
 drapery a freedom of arrangement not always found in the more elaborate and finished 
 productions of a succeeding age . — Bloxam on the Monumental Architecture and Sculpture 
 oj Great Britain, p. 129. 
 

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ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 119 
 
 finials, and other architectural details peculiar to the reign of 
 Edward I. 
 
 In the northern aisle of the choir is a monument attributed to 
 Bishop Lawrence de St. Martin, who died in 1274. Both the figure 
 of the bishop and the canopy are more highly ornamented than the 
 last mentioned. 
 
 Westward of this monument, in the same aisle, is a tomb of 
 Petworth marble, supposed to have been erected in memory of 
 Bishop Glanville, who died in the year 1214; it is ridged en dos 
 d’dne and is sculptured with heads of ecclesiastics in quatrefoil 
 panels, having in front below the ridge an arcade with enrichments 
 of foliage. 
 
 Against the southern wall of the eastern transept is the monu- 
 ment of Bishop Walter de Merton, who died in 1277. A costly 
 altar tomb, highly decorated with enamelling, in the style of the 
 thirteenth century, was originally erected over his remains, and 
 the effigy of this eminent prelate, represented in his episcopal 
 robes, was engraved on a brass plate, fixed in the upper horizontal 
 stone, and which was considered a very early example of that kind 
 of monumental decoration. Bound the verge of the tomb were 
 Latin verses in praise of his good work in founding Merton college 
 at Oxford. This interesting memorial was destroyed at the time of 
 the Beformation, together with many similar works of art, whieh 
 had for ages contributed to the beauty and dignity of ecclesiastical 
 edifices. In the reign of Elizabeth the fellows of Merton college. 
 Sir Henry Savile being then warden, erected upon the site of the 
 demolished tomb the present monument, which appears to be sur- 
 mounted by the original canopy. On the wall behind the recumbent 
 figure of the bishop are his arms and a purse, his badge as lord 
 chancellor. Although there exists but little to praise in the 
 architecture of this monument, yet it must be regarded as one of 
 the best examples of the style which characterised the period in 
 which it was erected, and, above all, as honourable to the good 
 feelings of the society by whom it was raised. 
 
 In the same transept is an altar-tomb of gray marble in memory 
 of Bishop Lowe, who died in 1407. The square compartments at 
 the head and foot, as well as on the front of the tomb, are charged 
 with shields, inscribed with the following . — 
 
 © 0 cst . amor . mms . 53£0 . gras. 
 
ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 120 
 
 together with shields of his own arms, and of those of the see of 
 Eochester. On the verge of the slab are the words — 
 
 i^fstrcre . 39 eus . nnune . jps . Johann ts .Hofoc . cpi'scopf . trclro 
 . biherc . bona . homfni' . tn . terra . bibenti'am . ^ancte . ^nUrea . et 
 . Augustine . orate . pro . nohts. 
 
 All the letters are in very high relief, and on labels round the base 
 of the tomb is this sentence : — 
 
 (Eluam . brebe . spaci'am . bre . munbi . gloria . «t . umbra . pommls . 
 sunt . efus . gaubi'a. 
 
 In the eastern aisle of this transept is a monument of Bishop 
 Warner, who died at the palace of Bromley, October 14, 1666. 
 He is the only prelate from Bishop Lowe to the present time who 
 has been buried in this cathedral. Of the ninety-two prelates raised 
 to this see, the names of no more than twenty-three are recorded, 
 whose remains have been deposited in this church, and of these the 
 monuments of only four can be fixed with any degree of certainty, 
 namely, Merton, Lowe, Warner, and that of Bishop John Bradfield, 
 who died in the year 1283, which is on the northern side of St. 
 Edmund’s chapel, near the entrance into the crypt. 
 
 A much smaller proportion in number has been burled here for 
 the last three hundred years than in all the time which had before 
 passed since the foundation of the church. It appears that during 
 the more early period only four bishops of Rochester were translated 
 to other sees ; but from Bishop Lowe, in the reign of Edward IV., 
 to Bishop Spratt, in the reign of James II., there were only six 
 bishops who died possessed of this diocese. Seven Bishops of 
 Eochester, Spratt, Atterbury, Bradford, Wilcocks, Pearce, Thomas, 
 and Horsley, holding the deanery of Westminster, together with 
 this see, were buried in Westminster Abbey Church, and no bishop 
 since the Eeformation has resided for any considerable time at the 
 palaces of Eochester or Hailing, but at Bromley. Brown Willis, 
 the antiquary, in his “ Survey of the Cathedrals of England,” con- 
 jectures that the deans and other dignitaries of this Cathedral have 
 been buried elsewhere, as he found so very few monuments erected 
 to their memory in Eochester Cathedral. 
 
 Three archdeacons only appear to have been interred in this 
 Cathedral, Dr. Tillesley, who died in 1624, Dr. Lee Warner, who 
 died in 1679, and Dr. John Denne, who died in 1767, whose 
 remains are deposited in the southern part of the western transept. 
 

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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The city of Winchester is situated in a valley watered by the river 
 Itchen, and is surrounded by cultivated downs ; as a bishop’s see 
 it is of very great antiquity, and having been the metropolis of the 
 West Saxons, the city abounds with objects of historical interest^ 
 Here Egbert was croAvned king of all England in A.D. 827, by 
 Wighten, Lshop of Winchester. 
 
 One of the greatest benefactors to the Cathedral and the city at 
 this early period was the celebrated St. S within, to whom various 
 miracles have been attributed; according to a very old versification 
 of the lives of the saints — 
 
 Scpnt Stoftljin bisf)opricfec to al goottntsse tirougf), 
 
 VLi)e totonr also of ragncfjfstrc i)C amenttcti inougl).* 
 
 Saint Swithin was a native either of this city or its suburbs, and 
 of a noble family; he was ordained priest by Helmstan, bishop of 
 Winchester, and was appointed president of a monastery here, 
 which afterwards bore his name, the priory of St. Swithin. He 
 became preceptor to prince Ethelwulph, Avho, after his accession 
 to the crown of his father Egbert, promoted Swithin to the see 
 of Winchester, to which he was consecrated A.D. 852; the bishop 
 died in the year 862, and was buried in the open cemetery of his 
 Cathedral, but his remains were afterwards removed into the new 
 church at the desire of Bishop Walkelyn, in the year 1093. 
 
 The translation of Saint Swithin’s corpse from the churchyard 
 to the choir of the Cathedral being delayed by violent rains, gave rise 
 to an adage, that whenever rain falls on his festival, 15th of July, 
 there will be forty days continuance of the same.* 
 
 King Edward the Confessor was crowned at Winchester in the 
 year 1042, by Eadsinus, archbishop of Canterbury, the first cere- 
 mony at which there is any notice of a coronation sermon. It was 
 
 > Warton’s History of English Poetry, vol. i. 
 
 * To this proverb Gay alludes in his “Trivia — 
 
 If on St. Swithin’s feast the welkin lowers, 
 
 And every penthouse streams with hasty showers. 
 
 Twice twenty days shall clouds their fleeces drain. 
 
 And wash the pavement with incessant rain. 
 
 VOL T. n 
 
123 
 
 AVINCHESTER CATHEDRAE 
 
 here also that his mother Emma underwent, without injury, the 
 ordeal of walking blindfold and barefoot over nine red hot plough 
 shares placed at unequal distances. A charter of privileges was 
 granted to the city of Winchester by King Henry II. in the year 
 1184, under which the mayor, the earliest appointment of that office 
 in the kingdom, and the heads of the corporation, claimed by the 
 tenure of grand serjeantry the superintendence of the royal kitchen 
 at coronations. 
 
 Richard Coeur de Lion was crowned here on the ITth of April, 
 1194. King Henry III., surnamed of Winchester, was born and 
 frequently held his court in this city, but the royal residence was 
 in a great measure removed to London, in the reign of his son 
 Edward I. 
 
 King Henry IV. was married at Winchester to J oan of Navarre, 
 in the year 1401. Prince Arthur, eldest son of King Henry VII., 
 was born here ; and at Winchester King Henry VIII. entertained 
 the emperor Charles V. during a week, in 1522, when the celebrated 
 round table was repainted.® 
 
 The marriage of Queen Mary with Philip of Spain, was solem- 
 nized at Winchester, on the 25th of July, 1554, when the queen and 
 king dined in public at the episcopal palace, and several days were 
 devoted to festivities. 
 
 In the middle of the city, which occupies an area within the 
 ancient walls, is a very beautiful cross, ornamented with tabernacle 
 work and crocketted pinnacles, arranged in three stages to the 
 height of forty-three feet ; it was erected by the guild of the Holy 
 Cross founded by King Henry VI. 
 
 Wolvesey Castle, the venerable episcopal residence, situated 
 south-eastward of the Cathedral, to which its precinct joined, was 
 
 ® King’s Arthur’s round table at Winchester is said to have originated with King 
 Stephen, as a means of preventing disputes for precedency amongst the officers of 
 his household. Philip Augustus of France, is also said to have introduced into his 
 court and kingdom the chivalrous institutions of the romances, and thus gave an 
 historical existence to the twelve peers of King Arthur, knights of the round table. 
 The huge table is still to be seen at Winchester ; it is preserved as a curious piece 
 of antiquity in the county hall, formerly the chapel of the royal castle, and is 
 supposed to be seven hundred years old. It is made of thick oak plank, and is 
 eighteen feet in diameter, painted over with the Tudor colours, green and white in 
 compartments, with a red and white rose in the centre. Each division is inscribed 
 in old English characters, with the name of a knight; excepting that in one com- 
 partment is a portrait of King Arthur himself 
 
WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 123 
 
 rebuilt on the site of a more ancient palace by Henry de Blois^ 
 bishop of Winchester, about the year 1138; it was nearly all 
 destroyed by order of Cromwell, in 1646. The picturesque ruins 
 of the bishop’s palace or castle are of considerable extent, without 
 any prominent architectural feature, consisting of heaps of walls, 
 some very lofty, and nearly all clad with ivy or concealed by shrubs 
 and trees.* Its principal gatehouse originally fronted the north, 
 and the embattled walls were defended by many round and square 
 towers placed at irregular intervals. The principal remains belong 
 to the keep, which appears to have been a parallelogram in plan, 
 extending tw o hundred and fifty feet east and west, and one hundred 
 and sixty feet north and south. Within this keep was a court, 
 which, besides the- principal entrance, had two other gateways, one 
 on the western, and the other on the southern side. 
 
 The Cathedral Church was founded and endowed by Kyneglls, 
 the first Christian king of the West Saxons, A.D. 634, who granted 
 to the church all the lands within seven miles distance. His son 
 Kenelwach was equally liberal to the see, and not only confirmed 
 his father’s grant, but added to it the manors of Alresford, Downton, 
 and Worthy. The church was first dedicated to Saint Amphibalus, 
 the instructor of St. Alban, then to Saint Peter, afterwards to Saint 
 Swithin, and last to the Blessed Trinity. 
 
 The bishops of Winchester had anciently very great privileges 
 and large possessions, and were reputed to be earls of Southampton. 
 Henry de Blois, brother of King Stephen, during his prelacy pro- 
 cured the pope’s consent to make Winchester an archbishopric, 
 although his intention was never carried into efiect. William de 
 Edington, bishop of Winchester, lord treasurer and chancellor to 
 King Edward III., was elected archbishop of Canterbury on the 
 decease of Islip, but the bishop refused to accept of the primacy, 
 alleging that “ although Canterbury had the highest rack, yet 
 Winchester had the deepest manger.” The bishop had the office 
 of prelate of the order of the Garter conferred upon him by King 
 Edward III. at its institution, and it has been continued to the 
 
 ^ Farnham Castle, the present residence of the hishop of Winchester, was also 
 in a considerable degree demolished by an order in 1C48, hut after the restoration 
 of Charles II., it was repaired by Bishop Morley. The fine gatehouse of Farn- 
 ham castle, built in the reign of Ilenry VII., adds much to the effect of that venerable 
 edifice. 
 
124 
 
 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAE, 
 
 bishops ever since ; he consequently bears the arms of the see of 
 Winchester impaled with his own paternal coat within the garter, 
 having the Geoi’ge, the badge of the order, pendent. 
 
 The Cathedral Church first erected becoming ruinous, it was 
 rebuilt by Ethelwold, and consecrated in the year 980. Although 
 Winchester Cathedral is known to have been enlarged in the reign 
 of William the Conqueror, on the accession of Bishop Walkelyn to 
 the see, and the oldest part of the present edifice is usually attributed 
 to that prelate, yet the late Mr. Garbett, an architect, who was 
 many years employed in the restoration of the church, strenuously 
 maintained that avery large and well defined portion of Anglo-Saxon 
 masonry yet remains, and that the Anglo-Norman bishop did not 
 level the whole with the ground, but left parts of the building 
 standing, purposely to make known to after ages the Norman 
 superiority in architectural science and taste, by preserving that 
 which would clearly exhibit the contrast.® 
 
 It was not the church alone that Bishop Walkelyn undertook to 
 rebuild, but also the extensive and numerous offices of the adjoining 
 monastery of Benedictine monks on the south-western side. The 
 whole work was completed within the space of fourteen years, 
 having been commenced in 1079, and finished in 1093, in which year, 
 on the 8th of April, the monks went in procession from their old to 
 their new monastery; on which occasion a great solemnity was held 
 in presence of most of the bishops and abbots of England. On the 
 15th of July, in the same year, it being Saint Swithin’s festival, his 
 shrine was carried from the old altar to the new one, a distance, pro- 
 bably of not more than forty feet, but which was doubtless lengthened 
 by the procession making the usual circuit of the cloisters. 
 
 The most conspicuous part remaining of Bishop Walkelyn’s 
 work is the massive central tower of the church, fifty feet broad 
 and one hundred and forty feet high. It bears evidence in the 
 general simplicity and massiveness of its architecture of the early 
 age in which it was built. The semicircular headed windows are 
 enriched with the chevron and billeted mouldings then in use, and 
 the capitals and ornaments of the shafts indicate the Anglo-Norman 
 style of architecture. This tower was erected to answer the purpose 
 of a lantern to the choir, and to increase the effect by giving height 
 ® Mr. Garbett died at Winchester on the 31st of August, 1834. 
 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDUAE. 1^5 
 
 to the interior, an object wbicb the Anglo-Norman architects carried 
 as far as possible in their sacred edifices. Both stories of the 
 interior of the tower are finished with care and enriched with 
 various ornaments then in use, although the whole is now excluded 
 in the view from below by a ceiling, the groining of which takes its 
 spring from the angles of four great arches erected for the support 
 of the tower.® 
 
 The transept of the Cathedral was also the work of Bishop 
 Walkelyn, and remains yet in a more firm and secure state than 
 any part of the building, which is of later construction. To an 
 architect there are few studies equal in point of value to this tran- 
 sept. It has been observed by an able architectural antiquary,^ 
 that this bishop set an example of the most finished kind of 
 construction in the tower and portions of the transept of his 
 Cathedral ; but that the succedent architect who completed the 
 transept was satisfied with workmanship of very inferior degree. 
 
 Godfrey De Lucy, bishop of Winchester, in the time of King 
 John, rebuilt the whole east end of the church, with the Lady 
 Chapel, as far as that anciently extended, and dying in the year 
 1204, was buried in the centre of his own works. Both on the 
 interior and exterior of this part of the church the architecture is 
 distinguished by ranges of short pillars supporting arches in form 
 of the upper part of a trefoil ; by narrow oblong windows without 
 mullions and with lancet-shaped headings ; by clusters of small 
 pillars of Purbeck marble, having bold and graceful mouldings on 
 the capitals and bases ; and by quatrefoil compartments within 
 circles, by way of still further enrichment ; all which characteristics 
 may be considered as prototypes of that style which attained per- 
 fection in Salisbury Cathedral. 
 
 William de Edington, bishop of Winchester, who was also 
 treasurer and chancellor to King Edward III., had begun and 
 undertaken to finish the rebuilding of the great nave of the church. 
 He died in the year 1366, having only lived to complete the western 
 front and a small part of the nave. 
 
 ® The ceiling, which had been placed within the central tower of St Albans’ Abbey 
 Chnrch, has lately been removed under the direction of Mr. Cottingham, and a very 
 beautiful effect has been the result by laying open the fine tiers of pillars and archea 
 formerly hidden. 
 
 1 Mr. Buckler. 
 
126 WINCHESTEB CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The celebrated WilliamofWykeham, who succeeded Edington 
 as bishop of Winchester, carried on the work, and may be said to 
 have rebuilt the body of the Cathedral from the western front to 
 the central tower, in the pointed style of architecture. In this act 
 of zeal and liberality he was assisted by the prior and monks of the 
 convent.® 
 
 Part of the eastern end of the Cathedral, from the central tower 
 to the low aisles of De Lucy’s erection, was rebuilt by Bishop Fox, 
 at the beginning of the sixteenth century, in all the finished elegance 
 of the Tudor period. In this part of the edifice bold and airy flying 
 buttresses stretch over the aisles and support the upper walls, 
 which are surmounted by an open battlement. Nearly at the same 
 period with Bishop Fox's work, an addition of about twenty-six 
 feet to the Lady Chapel at the eastern extremity was made by Prior 
 Silkstede, whose rebus and devices are exhibited on the architecture. 
 
 In this church, which has been denominated “ a school of archi- 
 tecture,” may be found admirable specimens of the rise, progress, 
 and perfection, of the pointed style ; there not being a single stage 
 of that remarkable and interesting mode of building, and hardly an 
 ornament made use of in it which may not be discovered in some 
 part or other of Winchester Cathedral. 
 
 The chief characteristics of the exterior of the church are the 
 length of its nave, the plainness of its mansonry, and the shortness 
 and solidity of the tower. Although the architectural antiquary 
 seeks in vain for that picturesque arrangement of parts and suc- 
 cessive variety of form which affords so much delight in a view 
 of the Cathedrals of Salisbury, Lincoln, Wells, and Ely, yet he soon 
 discovers a peculiar grandeur of effect arising from its extent and 
 quantity, together with many specific beauties of design, which tend 
 to rouse and gratify inquiry. As a distant object the Cathedral 
 presents a large and long mass of building ; the nave particularly, 
 as seen from the south, is distinguished by its great length of roof 
 and extent of unbroken line, and the massive tower, deficient in 
 height, gives the whole building an air of heaviness. 
 
 It has been remarked that the architects of the Anglo-Norman 
 period of history, affecting loftiness in their churches no less than 
 
 ® Ilis architect was William "Winford, and his surveyor Simon Membury; John 
 Wayte, one of the monks, acted as comptroller on the part of the convent, according to 
 Dr. Milner’s Uistorical Account of the Cathedral. 
 
T. V TIT. fx a: jx X v D ix T. X ji IX S' ki r. . 
 

 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 127 
 
 length, were accustomed to pile arches and pillars upon each other, 
 sometimes to the height of three stories, as seen in Bishop Walkelyn’s 
 work in this Cathedral ; they also frequently imitated these arches 
 in the enrichment of plain walls, and by way of ornament and 
 variety in the masonry sometimes caused these plain round arches 
 to intersect each other, as in the upper part of the southern transept; 
 being probably the earliest instance of this interesting ornament to 
 be met with in the kingdom. 
 
 The nave of Winchester Cathedral is considered one of the 
 finest in England, and is about the same length as that of York 
 Minster. In an examination of the architecture of the nave a 
 striking peculiarity in the windows has been noticed by an antiquary, 
 the form of the arch to these openings is found to be a segment of 
 a pointed arch, while a regular triangular proportioned pointed 
 arch, containing tracery, is as it were placed within it. This kind 
 of window construction is an original thought of Bishop Wykeham’s 
 although there are instances extant of the arches to the entrances 
 of castles constructed at the same period with a segment of a pointed 
 arch only. 
 
 The exterior of the choir and Lady Chapel are of most beautiful 
 workmanship ; the initials of Prior Silkstede’s name appear enve- 
 loped in a skein of silk, with the motto, Hn glortflin 79C0. The 
 arms of the bishopric of Winchester, the royal arms, etc., are also 
 upon the walls, inscribed with the same legend. 
 
 Very extensive, although by no means complete, repairs of this 
 Cathedral were carried on during sixteen years under the direction 
 of the Reverend George Frederic Nott, D.D., one of the preben- 
 daries, by Mr. William Garbett, an able and experienced architect. 
 
 The transept being the original unaltered Anglo-Norman archi- 
 tecture, displayed formerly a naked timber roof, not concealed 
 as in after works by a stone vault, this part has been covered 
 with a flat wooden ceiling, painted in quatrefoil compartments, 
 in the early Tudor style, and is executed sufficiently well to 
 pass for a work of that period. The ceiling of the central tower 
 is copied from that of the chapel in New College Oxford, of 
 Bishop Wykeham’s foundation. Four corbel figures, which origin- 
 ally sustained the springing of the vault, have been removed, and 
 dwarf clusters of three columns each have been substituted for 
 
128 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 them. Some of the screens which formerly existed, and were found 
 to intercept a view of the transept, have been also removed, and 
 in consequence a view of the cross aisles, somewhat resembling 
 in arrangement and situation those of the transept in Westminster 
 Abbey Church, are now beheld from the choir. The whole of these 
 important and necessary repairs, which had been too long neglected, 
 were brought to a conclusion in the year 1828 ; and various ancient 
 remains of painting, sculpture, and other vestiges of former times, 
 particularly noticed in Dr. Milner’s “ History and Survey of the 
 Antiquities of Winchester,” are now seen in a perfect state, as well 
 as many legendary paintings in the Lady Chapel.® 
 
 The whole length of the Cathedral from west to east is five 
 hundred and forty-five feet, and of the transept from north to south, 
 within the walls, is two hundred and eight feet. The breadth of the 
 nave with its aisles, is eighty-six feet, and the height is seventy- 
 eight feet. The choir, from the screen to the altar, is one hundred 
 and thirty-five feet in length, and the Lady Chapel is fifty-four feet, 
 while the length of the nave is two hundred and fifty feet. The 
 presbytery is seventy feet in length, and the breadth of the chapel 
 behind the high altar is twenty feet. 
 
 The cloisters of the Cathedral were entirely destroyed in the 
 time of Queen Elizabeth after the E-eformation, as well as the 
 chapter-house, the site of which is converted to a garden of the 
 deanery. The prior’s hall, and other parts of his lodgings, now 
 form the residence of the dean ; and the site of other conventual 
 buildings is occupied by the prebendal gardens. 
 
 Beneath the presbytery, aisles, and Lady Chapel, is a series of 
 crypts, consisting of three distinct apartments, two of which are 
 certainly very ancient, but the other is of comparatively modern 
 formation. The style of design in the ancient crypt corresponds 
 with that of the transept in its pillars and arches, which are, of 
 course adapted to their peculiarity of situation and object. The 
 piers and walls are composed of solid masonry, without ornamental 
 sculpture or mouldings. 
 
 The western front of the Cathedral, erected by Bishop Edington, 
 about the year 1350, is covered with ornament, in which there is a 
 
 ® Very copious descriptions of the repairs of this Cathedral maybe found in the 
 “ Gentleman’s Magazine” for 1827 and 1828. 
 
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■ W H M C H E S T IE ‘Ji (S AT lEI IE HD m AIL 
 
 REFERENCE TO THE ELAN 
 
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 U ihum and Aisles 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 1^9 
 
 simplicity and cliastlty of design strikingly characteristic of the 
 architectural taste in the reign of Edward III. There are no 
 towers upon this front, but in other respects the general design of 
 the porch and of the large western window much resembles that of 
 Canterbury Cathedral, erected at a later period.'® Large hexago- 
 nal turrets, which terminate in small crocketted spires, are carried 
 up at the angles of the nave, and between the buttresses of these 
 turrets, the principal porch or entrance of the nave is deeply re- 
 cessed, and is surmounted by a gallery, with an open-worked parapet; 
 the original use of this gallery was for the convenience of the bishop, 
 who, attended by his clergy, here gave his solemn benediction, on 
 particular occasions, to the people assembled in front of the church. 
 Immediately over the gallery is the great western window, of equal 
 width with the nave, and rising almost to the vaulting. The great 
 breadth of the window is distributed into three chief divisions, 
 which are again divided into three subordinate divisions and crossed 
 by four transom mullions, a manner of arranging the different lights 
 adopted in several of the principal windows constructed in the 
 succeeding century, and after the more flattened arch became 
 fashionable, as at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, King’s College 
 Chapel, Cambridge, &c." The wall of the highly pitched gable 
 of the roof is panelled in numerous compartments, and is surmounted 
 by an enriched tabernacled niche, containing a perfect statue of Wil- 
 liam of Wykeham, who is supposed to have completed the work on 
 this front, which was begun by Bishop Edington. The two porches 
 opening upon the aisles of the nave are recessed and constructed 
 in corresponding taste between large buttresses which support the 
 outer angles of the western front ; these buttresses are carried above 
 the parapet of the walls, and are surmounted by ornamental finials. 
 
 See page 22 ante. 
 
 The composition is considered to be good, and the mouldings well relieved in the 
 specimens enumerated, but this style is denounced, by a very competent judge of 
 pointed architecture, as betraying a closeness and heaviness of design, amounting to 
 degeneracy when compared with the florid style of the windows constructed in the 
 preceding age. This deterioration of beauty, Mr. Wilson says, was partly occasioned 
 by the lights betsveen the upright mullions being divided into so many heights or 
 panels, a mode which originated in the works of the celebrated William of Wykeham, 
 in the nave of his Cathedral at Winchester. The obtuse arch was also too often 
 allowed to cut off the varied tracery, which so much adorned the windows of earlier 
 date. — Puffin’s Specimens of Gothic Architecture. 
 
 VOL 1. S 
 
130 WI?JCHESTEE CATHEDRAL. 
 
 The extreme length of this front is one hundred and eighteen 
 feet, all the lower parts of which are encircled with tabernacle 
 work; under two prominent canopies, now mutilated, were formerly 
 statues of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, patrons of the church, 
 which have never been restored.'* 
 
 On entering the nave are seen the triumph and skill of Bishop 
 Wykeham in the vast extent from the western porch to the cen- 
 tral tower. It appears that this celebrated architect preserved as 
 much of the Anglo-Norman building, particularly of the nave, as 
 he found he could convert into the new style. He did not destroy 
 Bishop Walkelyn’s work, but formed his pointed arches by filling 
 up and otherwise adapting the old semicircular arches of the origi- 
 nal second story in the walls of the nave, and the Anglo-Norman 
 pillars may be clearly traced not only at the steps leading up to 
 the choir, but amidst the timbers of the roof on both sides of the 
 nave throughout the greater part of its extent, corresponding in 
 every respect with those remaining in the transept ; a circumstance 
 which demonstrates the prudence, economy, and skill of this muni- 
 ficent prelate. The bosses at the intersections of the groining in 
 the ceiling of the nave are charged with various shields of arms, 
 with badges and devices denoting the different benefactors of the 
 several compartments. Here are the arms of Beaufort, Wykeham, 
 and Waynflete, with the king’s device of the white hart. 
 
 At the western extremity of the northern aisle is a chamber, or 
 tribune, which seems to have been erected for the minstrels who 
 attended on great occasions, when the king, a legate, or some 
 prelate was received at the Cathedral in state by a procession of 
 the whole convent, at which times the church was hung from one 
 end to the other with tapestry, representing passages of scriptural 
 
 '2 A description of the Cathedral, for the use of visitors, commences singularly 
 enough with strong observations on the disgraceful neglect of this front, before which 
 the earth and rubbish is suflFered to accumulate, and the notice of the sUanger is very 
 properly directed to the decayed state of the gallery and the mullions of the window, 
 the broken glass in which, it appears, has been mended with fragments of opaque 
 colouring ; the destruetion of the canopies is also stated in terms of censure ; and for 
 the state in which the front is left by the dean and chapter offers this barren apology 
 that “ it was not possible to lower the alley and the ground near it to the level of the 
 church pavement without destroying the monuments and trees which at present occupy 
 them, and without other inconveniences.” The reader is requested to compare this 
 miserable pretext in favour of a few gravestones, with the truly lamentable destruction 
 of very beautiful monuments at Salisbury.— See p. 1 1 and 1 3 ante. 
 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 131 
 
 history : the large hooks for supporting the tapestry still remain 
 fixed to the sides of the great pillars. 
 
 An ancient font stands within the middle arch of the nave on the 
 northern side ; it consists of a square block of marble, supported 
 by a stool and pillars of the same ; the central pillar or stool has 
 horizontal flutes, and the pillars at the angles are also fluted; 
 excepting one, which is plain ; their capitals are formed of leaves, 
 and the basement of the whole design is enriched with a tortuous 
 moulding. Both the top and the four sides are covered with rude 
 sculpture, and there can be no doubt of its great antiquity.’^ The 
 ornaments on the top of the font are doves, emblematical of the 
 Holy Ghost, which appear breathing in phails, surmounted by 
 crosses, supposed to contain the two kinds of sacred chrism made 
 use of in baptism. On the sides of the font doves are repeated in 
 various attitudes, together with a salamander, emblematical of fire, 
 and in allusion to the passage in the gospel of St. Matthew, " He 
 shall baptise you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.”'* The sculp- 
 tures on the southern and western sides represent the passages in 
 the life of Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra, in Syria, who lived in 
 the fourth century after Christ, and was the patron of children. 
 On one side is represented the church of Myra and its arcades, the 
 upper part of which is terminated by crosses ; the dresses of the 
 several figures are curious, as denoting the costume of a remote 
 period of history. 
 
 About the middle of the southern side of the nave between the 
 fifth and sixth pillars is the Chantry Chapel, containing the monu- 
 ment of the founder, William of Wykeham, who died in 1404. 
 The design and execution of the work is perhaps one of the most 
 perfect specimens of monumental architecture of the period in 
 which the chapel was erected. 
 
 The chapel is divided in length into three arches, the canopies 
 of which are curved to correspond with the form of the arch of 
 
 A font very similar to this is in the church of East Meon, in Hampshire, an edifice 
 said to have been erected by Bishop Walkelyn. Anglo-Norman fonts are not un- 
 common, and are very rich in their embellishment, which may have been the reason 
 of their preservation. It is not unusual to find a font in a church of greater antiquity 
 than the building ; the earlier fonts, even if plain, appear to have been held in venera- 
 tion, and therefore allowed to remain, when the churches were rebuilt in a totally 
 different style. 
 
 Cbap. iii. ver. 2. 
 
132 
 
 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 the nave. Within the chapel, over the head of the monument, are 
 five tabernacled niches, intended for patron saints, besides those 
 on the outside, and ten others at the feet. The foundation of the 
 altar and part of the credence table on the right hand of it yet 
 remain. The effigy of the bishop is represented in full costume, 
 and with his mitre and crosier ; round the slab on which the figure 
 rests is an inscription in brass letters curiously inlaid. 
 
 Wykeham was elected to succeed his patron William de 
 Edington, as Bishop of Winchester, in 1366. He had been pre- 
 viously appointed clerk of the king’s works at Windsor, and by his 
 skill that castle was rebuilt; another great work was Queen- 
 borough Castle ; and his architectural genius was afterwards 
 eminently displayed at Oxford, The first instance on record, in 
 which he is noticed as a benefactor, was his rebuilding at his own 
 expense the body of the collegiate church of St. Martin-le-grand, 
 London ; together with the cloister of the chapter-house, while he 
 was dean of that college. His advancement to the bishopric of 
 Winchester was followed by his being appointed chancellor of 
 England. 
 
 The bishop obtained the king’s license to found New College, 
 Oxford, in 1379, and in 1380 the foundation was laid. The build- 
 ing was finished in six years, and in 1386 the society made their 
 public entrance into it. It is rather remarkable that the name of 
 New College, which was given without much impropriety, should 
 be continued until the present day, when it is in reality the oldest 
 college in Oxford, as to its principal building's, and the seventh in 
 the order of foundation. In the chapel of New College is preserved 
 the identical crosier of the founder, which is nearly seven feet high, 
 of silver, gilt, and enamelled. 
 
 Winchester College, another celebrated institution, was founded 
 by this bishop in 1382, by charter : the first stone was laid in 1387 
 and in 1393 the warden and society made their solemn entrance 
 into it ; the bronze figure of the bishop over the door was the work 
 of C. G. Cibber. William of Wykeham lived long enough to 
 witness the prosperity of both his institutions, and almost to see 
 others emanating from them. He died in his eightieth year, and 
 was interred in this his own chapel at Winchester. 
 
 On the same side of the nave beneath the tenth arch from the 
 
WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 133 
 
 western front, and at the foot of the steps leading to the choir, is 
 the monumental chapel of Bishop Edington, which is erected in a 
 similar style of architecture to that of Wykeham’s chantry, and 
 scarcely less highly enriched; he died in 1366. In the pavement 
 before this chapel is a marble slab in memory of Bishop John 
 Thomas, who died in 1781. 
 
 In the southern aisle of the nave is a monument of Bishop 
 Richard Willis, who was translated from Salisbury in 1723, and 
 died in 1734. It consists of a sarcophagus, on which is a reclining 
 figure of the prelate sculptured by R. Cheere ; the head of the 
 figure is considered a very fine proof of talent. 
 
 Near the eighth pillar from the western front is a marble slab, 
 covering the remains of Bishop Robert Horne, translated from 
 Durham in 1561, and who died in 1580. To the injudicious zeal 
 of this prelate is ascribed much of the destruction which took place 
 at that period in the Cathedral, as well as the dilapidation of the 
 property of the bishopric. On the north side of the nave is the tomb 
 of Bishop John Watson, the successor of Horne, who died in 1584. 
 
 In the centre of the nave were buried Bishop Walkelyn, the 
 builder of the church and priory, and Bishop William Giffard, his 
 successor, the builder of St Saviour’s Church, Southwark, who 
 died in 1129. Against the easternmost pillar on the northern side 
 of the nave is a monument of Bishop Hoadly, a prelate celebrated 
 for his controversial talents, who had successively held the sees of 
 Bangor, Hereford, and Salisbury ; he was bishop of Winchester 
 more than twenty-six years, and died in 1761. This monument 
 consists of a very fine medallion portrait of the bishop, blended 
 with singular emblems, as the cap of liberty, the pastoral staff, 
 Magna Charta, and the Holy Scriptures.*^ 
 
 The choir is immediately under the great tower, enclosed by a 
 stone screen in the pointed style of architecture, erected by W. 
 Garbett ; it is ornamented with statues in bronze of King James I. 
 and King Charles I. The stalls on either side of the choir with 
 their misereries and canopies are ancient ; some of the more modern 
 bear the date 1540. The pulpit was given to the Cathedral by 
 
 ** It is said that in consequence of the doctrines maintained by Bishop Hoadly, tho 
 government resolved to dissolve the convocation of the clergy ; since his time, although 
 regularly assembled on the opening of a new parliament, it has never transacted any 
 business. 
 
134 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 Prior Silkstede, and bears liis name in various parts ; near it is the 
 tomb of Bishop Toclive, who died in 1189. The episcopal throne, 
 an elegant composition of wood work, was designed by Garbett, in 
 strict accordance with the stalls : the details of this throne are 
 nearly all derived from ancient ornaments existing in the choir and 
 other parts of the church, and the general composition of the design 
 has an original and perfectly harmonious effect. The organ case 
 h similarly ornamented, and is very judiciously placed beneath one 
 of the arches which support the Anglo-Norman tower of Bishop 
 Walkelyn’s erection. This arrangement affords an unbroken view 
 of the church from the great western door to the eastern window. 
 In the centre of the ceiling of this part of the Cathedral is an 
 emblem of the Trinity, surrounded by a chronogrammatical inscrip- 
 tion, showing the date of its erection, in 1634 ; the whole ceiling 
 under the tower has lately been restored in very good taste. The 
 vaulting of the choir from the tower to the eastern window is the 
 work of Bishop Fox, and displays on the several bosses at the 
 intersection of the ribs a variety of heraldic enrichment in proper 
 colours amidst a profusion of gilding ; here are to be seen the royal 
 arms of the house of Tudor, the arms of Cardinal Beaufort of the 
 house of Plantagenet, and the arms of the episcopal sees of Exeter, 
 Bath and Wells, Durham, and Winchester, over all of which Bishop 
 Fox had presided. The screens of the sanctuary are also the work 
 of the same prelate in the year 1525. Upon the top of these par- 
 titions, over the centre of each division, are ranged six mortuary 
 chests, containing the remains of several exalted personages that 
 have been interred in the Cathedral : each chest is carved, painted, 
 and gilt, and inscribed with the name of the illustrious characters 
 whose remains they contain. The inscriptions are in Latin, but 
 admit of the following translations : 
 
 1. The bones of Kynegils and of Adolphus lie together in this 
 chest ; the former was the founder, the latter the benefactor of this 
 church. 
 
 2. Here King Egbert rests, together with King Kenulph, each 
 of whom bestowed great benefits upon the church. 
 
 3. In this chest and in that opposite to it on the other side are 
 the remains of Kings Canute and Bufus, of Queen Emma, and of 
 bishops Wina and Alwyn. 
 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 135 
 
 4. In this chest, in the year 1661, were promiscuously laid 
 together the bones of princes and prelates which had been scat- 
 tered about by sacrilegious barbarism in the year 1643. 
 
 5. King Edmund, whom this chest contains, and who swayed the 
 sceptre of royalty while his father was yet living : O Christ, receive. 
 
 6. King Edrid died in the year 955. The pious Edrid who 
 rests in this tomb admirably governed the country of the Britons. 
 
 The altar screen of stone work is considered to be one of the 
 richest specimens of its kind in England ; it was executed in the 
 time of Bishop Fox, and exhibits great delicacy of workmanship, 
 consisting of a variety of niches with ornamented canopies. This 
 screen, which is more elaborate in its detail than that of St. Alban’s 
 Abbey Church, has been lately very carefully restored.’® On the 
 spandrils of the doorways are the Annunciation and Visitation of 
 the Blessed Virgin, in fine preservation. 
 
 Over the altar screen is the eastern window of the Cathedral, 
 filled with ancient stained glass, chiefly consisting of figures of 
 apostles, prophets, and bishops, with legends attached to them ; 
 these have been mutilated and improperly arranged, the figures are 
 mingled together without order, and in many instances the legends 
 are misapplied. In the upper compartments of the window are 
 figures of Christ and the Virgin Mary, between which are traces 
 of the usual emblems of the Trinity : part of these having been 
 removed, the place is filled with a figure of Saint Bartholomew, 
 executed in a much fainter style of painting than the rest. In small 
 compartments adjoining are angels holding trumpets, other angels 
 are bearing the arms of the see of Winchester, and the paternal 
 arms of Bishop Fox, accompanied by his motto, Est Deo Gracia. 
 In the next division of the window is Saint Ethelwold, bishop of 
 
 ’® The altar screen at St. Saviour’s, Southwark, agrees with this of Winchester in 
 several important particulars, not only in the arrangement and general design, but in 
 the actual number of the niches, a coincidence which can alone be attributed to the 
 circumstances of the two screens being the work of one hand. The church of Saint 
 Mary Overy, now the parish Church of Saint Saviour, nearly adjoined the episcopal 
 palace, and was at all times an object of the regard and attention of the bishops of 
 Winchester; Bishop Fox appears to have been a benefactor to the church by a similar 
 donation to that which he had made to his Cathedral, marking it with his peculiar device 
 of the pelican and agnus dei, to point out to posterity its history and founder .— a 
 hescription of the Altar Screen at Saint Saviour's Church, by E. L Carlos, in the Gentle- 
 man’s Magazine for February, 1834. 
 
1S6 
 
 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL 
 
 Winchester, who not only rebuilt this Cathedral, but founded or 
 rebuilt the churches of Ely, Peterborough, and Thorney. He died 
 in 984. Beside the bishop are two prophets, one of whom is Joel. 
 In the lowermost divisionof the window are Saint Swithin and Saint 
 Peter, Saint Paul, and representations of ancient prophets, one of 
 which bears the name of Malichias on the border of his mantle. 
 
 Two of the stained glass windows of the choir have been sacri- 
 ficed, being entirely covered over with whitewash, in order to 
 prevent the glare which they were supposed to cast on West’s 
 famous picture at the altar. The other windows chiefly contain 
 representations of prophets and apostles, remarkable for the cor- 
 rectness of their drawing and for richness of colour. Most of the 
 figures may be ascertained either by the legends, or the attributes 
 of the saints represented. 
 
 Over the altar is a picture of the raising of Lazarus, by Benjamin 
 West, P.E.A. The back of the high altar anciently consisted 
 of plated gold, garnished with precious stones ; upon it stood a 
 tabernacle and steps of embroidered work, ornamented with pearls, 
 also six silver candlesticks gilt, intermixed with reliquaries, wrought 
 in gold and enriched with jewels. Still higher was a large cru- 
 cifix, with attendant images of the Virgin Mary and Saint John, 
 composed of the purest gold, and garnished with jewels, the gift 
 of Bishop Henry de Blois, King Stephen’s brother. Over this 
 appears to have been suspended, beneath the exquisite stone 
 canopy, the crown of King Canute, placed there in homage after 
 the scene of his commanding the sea to retire from his feet, which 
 took place at Southampton.” On great festivals and solemn occa- 
 sions innumerable ornaments of inestimable value were employed 
 in the service of the church. The richness and beauty of the 
 ecclesiastical furniture of this Cathedral is said to have dazzled the 
 eyes of strangers who came to view it.” 
 
 Before the altar lie the remains of Bishop Henry de Blois, and 
 at the bottom of the steps was buried Bishop Henry Woodlock, 
 who died in 1316. 
 
 In the middle of the sanctuary is the tomb of King William 
 
 n See the Inventory of Cathedral Ornaments in the “Monasticon.” 
 
 Historia Major Wintoniensis, written by Thomas Rudborne, a monk of Winches- 
 ter, in the middle of the fifteenth century, and printed in "Warton’s Anglia Sacra. 
 
WINCHESTER CATHEDRAE. 
 
 137 
 
 who was accidentally slain by an arrow in the New Forest.'® It is 
 composed of English gray marble, and is raised about two feet 
 above the ground, in that early form called dos d'dne, presenting 
 the general outline of a house, in allusion to its destination, the last 
 dwelling here below. The king’s bones are supposed to have been 
 removed by Bishop de Blois, as an honour paid to his remains; but 
 when the present tomb was opened in the time of Cromwell, there 
 were found in it some pieces of cloth embroidered with gold, a 
 large gold ring, and a small silver chalice. 
 
 On the northern side of the sanctuary is an altar tomb, supposed 
 to cover the remains of Bishop John de Pontoise, who died in 1304. 
 In this part of the church is also the monument of Bishop Thomas 
 Cooper, who died in 1594. Close to the altar is a mural monument 
 of Brownlow North, bishop of Winchester for thirty-nine years, 
 who died at the episcopal palace, Chelsea, 12th of J uly, 1820, set. 
 79. It was sculptured by Sir Francis Chantrey, B. A. 
 
 No church in England contains so many elegant memorials of 
 prelates who were distinguished in their lifetime by their virtues, 
 their piety, and their worth ; none are to be found more magnificent, 
 more perfect, or of superior sculpture. The sumptuous monumental 
 chapel of Bishop Richard Fox, founder of Corpus Christ! College, 
 Oxford, adjoins the back of the altar screen, and extending east- 
 ward presents the beautiful elevation of its front towards the 
 southern aisle of the choir. 
 
 During the reign of Henry VII., Bishop Fox enjoyed the un- 
 limited favour and confidence of the king, and bore a conspicuous 
 share, not only in the political measures, but even in the court 
 amusements and ceremonies of that reign. King Henry VII. 
 appointed him one of his executors, and recommended him strongly 
 to his son and successor. Although he retained his seat in the 
 privy council, and continued lord privy seal under King Henry 
 VHI., his influence gradually abated, and, after remaining some 
 time in office. Bishop Fox, together with Archbishop Warham, re- 
 tired from Court in the year 1515. 
 
 '® He dyed in the yeere of Christ, 1100, and in the 13th yeere of his raigne, on 
 the second day of August, when he had raigned twelve yeares, eleven moneths 
 lacking eight days, and was buried at Winchester, in the Cathedral Church or 
 Monasterie of Saint Swithen, under a plaine flat marble stone before the lectorne in 
 t’ e queere, but long since his bones were tra’ slated in a coffer, and laid with King 
 Knute’s bones. — Stowe's Chronicle. 
 
 VOL. I. T 
 
WINCirESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 138 
 
 He was translated from Durham to Winchester in the year 
 1500^ and his retirement to this see was devoted to acts of charity 
 and munificence, although he did not now for the first time appear 
 as a public benefactor. He had repaired the palace of Durham 
 while bishop of that see, and displayed a considerable taste for 
 architecture. The foundation of Corpus Christi College was pre- 
 ceded by the purchase of land in Oxford, which he completed in 
 1513, and by license of Henry VIII., dated 26th of November, 
 1516, he obtained leave to found a college for divinity, philosophy, 
 and arts ; the statutes are dated 1527, the twenty-seventh year of 
 his translation to Winchester. In the year 1522 he founded a free 
 school at Taunton, and another at Grantham, and extended his 
 benificence to foundations within the diocese of Winchester. The 
 triumphs of his munificence and taste are principally to be contem- 
 plated in his additions to this Cathedral ; in these the most exquisite 
 art was employed to execute the noble and elegant designs. The 
 bishop was also unbounded in his charities to the poor ; at the same 
 time exercising hospitality and promoting the trade of the city by a 
 large establishment which he kept up at Wolvesley castle, his house- 
 hold consisting of two hundred and twenty servants. He died the 
 14th of September. 1528, and was buried in a chantry chapel, which 
 he had built for that purpose.^® In this magnificent sepulchral chapel 
 every effort of ingenuity and skilful workmanship have been exerted 
 to their utmost, and it unquestionably affords one of the most ex- 
 traordinary examples of design and sculpture in existence. Four 
 equal divisions compose the architectural design of the front, the 
 elegance of which corresponds with the ornaments that enrich it. 
 These divisions are formed by octagonal turrets rising from the 
 pavement, and exceeding the height of the surmounting parapet, 
 where they are larger and more decorated. Between these turrets 
 and rising from the ornamented course below the parapet are 
 smaller finials, each supporting a pelican in its piety, an emblem of 
 the Christian church, and a favourite device of Bishop Fox. The 
 height of the chapel is divided into two stories ; the lower of solid 
 masoni'y, enriched by a series of canopied niches and panelled com- 
 
 In the custody of the president of Corpus Christi College is preserved the 
 very elegant crosier of the founder, of silver gilt and enamelled, nearly six feet in 
 height, and a saltceller also of silver gilt and enamelled; it hears the initials ot 
 Bishop Richard Fox, and the pelican his badge, frequently repeated. 
 

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■WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 139 
 
 partments of elegant design and exquisite -workmansliip. In the 
 westernmost division is the door of entrance to the chapel ; and in 
 the third division eastward, which projects a little on the basement^ 
 is an arched recess, containing a sculptured effigy of the bishop, who 
 is represented emaciated and clothed in a winding-sheet. The divi- 
 sions of the upper story are composed of large arches, the spandrils 
 are charged with pelicans, and the arches are subdivided into two 
 open compartments by ornamental mullions, forming inner arches, 
 terminated by crocketted finials ; these are also divided into two 
 openings, and in their height by embattled transoms. The sur- 
 mounting cornice and its parapet are very elegant ; the projecting 
 course is enriched by a very beautifully designed and sculptured 
 band of entwined vine leaves, with tendrils and fruit delicately 
 undercut, and marked with the initial letters H. W. in one part. 
 The parapet is composed of lozenge-shaped compartments, enclosing 
 quatrefoils in open work, and terminated by large and small leaves 
 alternately disposed on the summit. Between the octagonal turrets 
 and the outer mouldings of the arches or windows of the upper 
 story are canopied niches, which, together with those on the lower 
 story, make the whole number of niches which originally contained 
 statues thirty-eight ; their canopies are nearly alike, the difference 
 being only in the detail of the ornaments. The pedestals intended 
 to sustain the figures are remarkably elegant, particularly those 
 rising from the base of the chapel. Mr. Buckler, an architect of 
 established reputation, whose judgment may be relied on, in a 
 description of this chantry, says, “ On the most scrupulous exa- 
 mination of the smallest part or ornament, whether a eanopy, a 
 crocket, or the smallest moulding, the character and precision are 
 equally the same. The roof of every canopy differs in design, as 
 also the animals, in their positions, which are attached to the arches ; 
 nor is the interior of this chapel less beautiful or deserving of notice 
 than the exterior, although less enriched. The chapel is ascended 
 by several steps through a doorway in the first division from tlje 
 western angle ; the roof is in an almost infinite variety of compart- 
 ments, divided and subdivided, and connected by knots of leaves, 
 and having various enrichments. The niches at the eastern end of 
 the chapel are as delicate and beautiful as ingenuity could make 
 them, and the internal parts of the canopies rival anything of their 
 
140 
 
 ■WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 kind. Behind the altar of this chapel is a small oratory, to which 
 the founder resorted for devotion ; it has no other ornament than a 
 large niche belonging to the more ancient screen, which has been 
 mutilated.”*^ 
 
 The entire space between the altar-screen of the Cathedral is 
 occupied by another chapel, in which mass was formerly celebrated 
 every morning immediately after the holding of the chapter. Here 
 also was deposited the shrine of Saint Swithin, which was of silver 
 gilt, and adorned with precious stones, the gift of King Edgar. On 
 the northern side of this chapel and corresponding in situation 
 with Bishop Fox’s chantry in the south, is the monumental chapel of 
 Stephen Gardiner, bishop of Winchester and chancellor of England, 
 the illegitimate son of Lionel W'ydville, bishop of Salisbury, the 
 brother of Elizabeth, queen of Edward IV. 
 
 After the accession of Queen Mary, this bishop rose by hasty 
 steps to the prime ministry, and became possessed of more power, 
 both civil and ecclesiastical, than any English minister ever enjoyed, 
 excepting his own master. Cardinal Wolsey. He was always a 
 guardian of the revenues of the church, both regular and secular, 
 and had projected additional security for church and abbey lands; 
 but he fell ill and died soon after, on the 12th of November, 1555, 
 set. 72, at York Place, Whitehall, whence his body was removed 
 to Saint Mary Overy’s church, and, after great preparations, was 
 finally interred in his own chapel in Winchester Cathedral. The 
 design of this chantry, differing greatly from that of Bishop Fox, 
 is not unworthy of notice ; it abounds with an intermixture of 
 Florentine and Tudor enrichments. 
 
 The monumental chapels of Cardinal Beaufort and of Bishop 
 Waynflete fill the middle arches of the presbytery, a part of the 
 Cathedral erected by Bishop Godfrey de Lucy, about 1190, and 
 who is himself buried under a tomb of gray marble, opposite the 
 entrance of the Lady Chapel. 
 
 The architectural arrangement and detail of the parts and 
 enrichments of the monuments of Beaufort and Waynflete bear great 
 resemblance ; the former, erected forty years before the latter, is 
 more simple in design, more chaste in its ornaments, more delicate 
 
 See “ Gentleman’s Magazine for 1816 and an engraving of the Monument, by 
 Skelton and Winkles, in the “Oxford Founders,” 1831. 
 
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WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 141 
 
 and beautiful in its execution. Cardinal Beaufort, bishop of Win- 
 chester, the son of John of Ghent, duke of Lancaster, was lord 
 chancellor and one of the guardians of King Henry VI.^® He 
 possessed a most munificent spirit, which has cast a lustre on his 
 character, and finished that part of Winchester Cathedral which 
 had been left incomplete by his predecessor Wykeham ; and also 
 repaired Hyde Abbey, which had been founded by Alfred the Great. 
 The cardinal refounded the celebrated hospital of Saint Cross, and 
 erected at his own expense the greater part of the present building. 
 He died the 14th of June, 1447. 
 
 The cardinal’s monument is on the southern side of the pres- 
 bytery ; a sumptuous canopy covering the tomb and figure of this 
 extraordinary prelate rests upon eight clusters of delicately-formed 
 pillars, four at the angles of the monument, arid two intermediate 
 on each side. Bound the base is an open-panelled stone fence 
 enclosing the tomb. Each side of the monument has one large and 
 two smaller arches ; the latter, divided in height and width, contain 
 the doors ; but the former are open. These arches and pillars sup- 
 port a canopy of matchless elegance and beauty, with pinnacles rising 
 to the ceiling of the presbytery. This, the most elaborate part of 
 the design, consists wholly of an abundance of large tabernacles 
 divided by smaller niches, with their intermediate compartments and 
 other ornaments, supported by flying buttresses, sometimes united, 
 terminated by pinnacles proportioned to their size; the whole canopy 
 rising in the centre in the same degree as the arched ceiling under 
 which it is placed. The head and foot of the monument are united 
 with the clusters of pillars supporting the arches of the aisle. 
 
 The extent of violence upon the more delicate enrichments of 
 this superb monument has been such as to leave not a single niche 
 and scarcely one pinnacle entire. The sculptured figure of Cardinal 
 Beaufort rests on an altar tomb, which is panelled with quatrefoil 
 compartments deeply cut, and having at the back a plate of gilt 
 brass ; he is represented with a placid and dignified countenance, 
 and is properly habited ; the feet of the figure rest against a stone 
 bearing the arms of Beaufort, surmounted by a cardinal’s hat. 
 
 The monument of Bishop Waynflete, the illustrious founder of 
 The cardinal accompanied King Henry into France, and performed the 
 ceremony of crowning the young monarch in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, at Paris 
 in 1431. 
 
142 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAE. 
 
 Magdalene College, Oxford, on the northern side of the presbytery, 
 corresponds with Cardinal Beaufort’s, and is of the same propor- 
 tions, uniting in a similar manner with the arch and pillars of the 
 Cathedral, The canopy of this monument is in the same manner 
 raised upon eight piers by arches over them ; but in the lower part 
 is an additional screen of enclosure to the sides of the chapel, which 
 interrupts the view of the tomb and figure of the prelate, and renders 
 the design more complex. This is one peculiar difierence between 
 these monuments, and another is in the angular cluster of buttresses, 
 each of which presents a large tabernacled niche, with a pedestal for 
 a statue rising from the base. The upper part, or canopy of the 
 tomb, unlike that of Cardinal Beaufort’s, consists entirely of per- 
 forated compartments, highly enriched with crocketted pinnacles and 
 finials. The form and arrangement of the design is on the same plan, 
 with nearly the same proportions and number of compartments. 
 There are indeed more ornaments, which are more minute, and it is 
 on the whole less simply elegant than the other monument; but the 
 details have not been designed with less care or executed with less 
 skill. 
 
 Bishop William of Waynflete succeeded Cardinal Beaufort in 
 the see of Winchester, and his enthronement was honoured by the 
 presence of King Henry VI., who had employed him in affairs of 
 critical importance, and who afterwards appointed him lord high 
 chancellor. He resigned this office in 1460, a short time before the 
 fatal battle of Northampton. On the accession of Edward IV. he 
 was treated with respect in consequence of his high character and 
 talents, and he lived to see the great union of the houses of York 
 and Lancaster. Besides the foundation of Magdalene College, the 
 largest excepting Christchurch, and the most perfect and beautiful 
 in the University of Oxford, he established a free grammar school 
 at Waynflete, his native town; and was a considerable benefactor 
 to Eton College, Winchester Cathedral, and other places. His 
 munificent spirit induced him to employ the ablest architects, and 
 he himself was distinguished by profound and correct judgment in , 
 the art of design. The bishop died the 11th of August, 1486, and 
 was buried in this chapel with great funeral pomp. 
 
 The sculptured figure of Bishop Waynflete lies on an elevated 
 tomb within the chapel, which is supported at the angles by wreathed 
 
WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 14i8 
 
 pillars, having the ends and sides panelled, and enclosing within 
 quatrefoils branches of lilies, his favourite device. The head of the 
 bishop is represented supported on cushions, his eyes raised to 
 heaven, his hands closed as in prayer with a heart between them, in 
 allusion to the sursiom corda of the liturgy. He is exhibited in 
 much humbler attire than Bishop Wykeham, but has jewels on his 
 gloves, a ring on the middle finger of the right hand, his pastoral 
 staff is of singular form, and the mitre is richly ornamented. At 
 his feet is an angel bearing a shield charged with his arms, impaled 
 with the see of Winchester, and within the garter j they are also 
 sculptured on the middle compartment of the ceiling. It is probable 
 that the three niches, divided by tiers of open arches, yet remain- 
 ing at the eastern end of the chapel, were intended for statues of 
 Saint Mary Magdalene the patron saint, and Saint Peter and 
 Saint Paul, as on the seal of his college at Oxford, and that an 
 altar once stood beneath them. 
 
 This chapel, an interesting example of Bishop Waynflete’s 
 elegant taste, is kept in fine preservation by the president and 
 fellows of Magdalene College, Oxford. The last reparation in 1828 
 was made under the skilful direction of Mr. Buckler.^^ 
 
 Between the chantries of Peaufort and Waynflete is the monu- 
 ment of one of the family of De Foix, lord of Wineall, near this city. 
 
 Three chapels, enclosed by screens, form the eastern extremity 
 of the Cathedral ; that in the centre, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, 
 was originally built by Bishop de Lucy, but was extended to a 
 greater length by Priors Hunton and Silkstede, whose initials and 
 rebuses appear on the groining of the ceiling. The walls on each 
 side the Lady Chapel, from the altar to the space occupied by the 
 stalls, are covered with legendary paintings ; the subjects relate to 
 different miracles wrought by the intercession of the Virgin Mary. 
 The battle between the renowned Guy, earl of Warwick, who was 
 devoted to the Blessed Virgin, and Colbrand, the Danish champion, 
 represented on the walls of this chapel is nearly defaced, as w'ell as 
 many others, under the idea of their idolatrous tendency. The in- 
 
 According to the statutes the college was to be called Saint Mary Magdalene 
 College, to the honour and praise of Christ crucified, the Blessed Virgin his mother 
 Saint Mary Magdalene, Saint John the Baptist, the apostles Saint Peter and Saint 
 Paul, the glorious confessor Saint Swithin, and other patrons of the Cathedral of 
 Winchester. 
 
144 WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. 
 
 scriptions that accompany these paintings, have at the end, in se- 
 veral instances, a reference to an account formerly extaat.^^ 
 
 On the southern side of the Lady Chapel is Bishop Langton’s 
 chapel, profusely enriched with carvings in oak of armorial sub- 
 jects, vine branches, &c. The vine is represented growing out of 
 a tun, denoting Winton, his see. Amidst these ornaments, the 
 bishop’s motto, 'ii.nus tlbl is frequently repeated. In the 
 
 middle of the chapel is the tomb of Bishop Thomas Langton, the 
 predecessor of Bishop Fox, who died in 1500. 
 
 The northern chapel, at the eastern end of the Cathedral, is 
 supposed to have been a chantry of Adam de Orlton, who was 
 bishop of Winchester for eleven years, and died in 1345, but there 
 is no monument to his memory at present existing. In the chapel 
 on the northern side is a monument of Dr. Peter Mews, a bishop 
 of Winchester, who had served as a captain in the royal army 
 during the civil war, and who signalized himself at the battle of 
 Sedgmoor, where he commanded the artillery. He died in 1706. 
 On the opposite side of the chapel is a monument of Richard 
 Weston, earl of Portland, K.G., lord treasurer, who died in 1634, 
 with his figure in armour, of bronze.’^® 
 
 Bishop Morley, who died in 1684, is buried in the northern 
 aisle of the nave and Sir George Pretyman Tomline, Bart. D.D., 
 bishop of Winchester, who died on the 14th of November, 1827, 
 set. 77, at Kingston Hall, Dorsetshire, is buried near the western 
 end of the southern aisle. 
 
 The subjects are engraved in “ Carter’s Specimens of Ancient Sculpture and 
 Painting.” One is the Annunciation. Others occur in credible historians ; but they 
 are chiefly derived from unauthenticated legends, and at present are only valuable for 
 the information they convey concerning the customs of former times. 
 
 A fine portrait of the Earl of Portland, by Vandyck, is at Gorhambury, in 
 Hertfordshire, and his character is given in “Pennant's Journey from Chester to 
 London.” 
 
 The ancient palace of the bishops of Winchester in Southwark, having been 
 dilapidated during the civil war, an act of parliament was passed in 1663, to enable 
 George Morley, bishop of Winchester, to lease out the houses in Southwark for other 
 purposes, together with two parks and other demesnes at Bishop’s Waltham, in 
 Hampshire ; and by the same act a mansion at Chelsea, built by James, duke of 
 Hamilton, was purchased as a residence for the bishops of this see, and called Win- 
 chester House. George Tomline, bishop of Lincoln, who was translated to Winchester 
 in 1820, obtained an act of parliament to enable him to sell the episcopal palace at 
 Chelsea, belonging to this see, and in 1821 it was sold for £6000. 
 
 END OF VOLUME I.